Earthshine: An insect folds its wings, bringing itself to a stop. Stretching taut its feeler, it focuses all of its attention on a flower. A wolf at rest shows its stomach to the sky, and attempts..., Konoike Tomoko

An ominous, massive skull dominates the center of Konoike Tomoko’s eight-panel screen Earthshine. Flanking the skull on both sides are figures caught between animal and human states of being: a wolf-like creature on the left and a moth-like creature on the right. The screen references the oral tradition of the Ainu—a people of ancient origins who settled northern Japan. An Ainu myth recounts how the people originated from the union of a wolf-like creature and a goddess. The back of the screen is painted with swirling ether evocative of ki (Chinese: qi or ch’i), which has a literal meaning of “air” or “gas,” but expansively refers to the vital life force in all beings.