The successful bidder for this item will receive "Lotus Mother," a signed and numbered hand-pulled silkscreen print from artist Mayumi Oda's "Buddhist Series" collection.

Deputy editor Andrea Miller interviewed Ms. Oda last year for Lion's Roar:  

"Mayumi Oda, now aged eighty, is known as the Matisse of Japan. Her signature style is an elegant, heartfelt whimsy that's infused with spirituality, sensuality, and vivid color. She's had more than fifty solo shows internationally and her work is in such high-profile permanent collections as those of the Museum of Modern Art, New York, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and the U.S. Library of Congress. But in addition to her prodigious creative output, Oda has had a rich life as a Buddhist and activist, mother and farmer.

'It's not that I became a Buddhist,' she tells (Miller.) 'I was born a Buddhist. It's in my blood.'"

Says Ms. Oda, "I wanted to paint the way I felt about my life with Buddhism. Especially as a woman living in the United States, there was a noticeable difference from what I had experienced in Japan. In the 1980s, many women were practicing Buddhism which eventually led to the women's spirituality movement, a significant era in American Buddhism. There were few female Buddhas so I thought I had to create it, I made an effort to transform male deities into female deities. Over the years, I have painted the deities that I felt that I could identify with. For example, if I needed strength, I created a Goddess of Compassion with a sword to cut through my illusions. In 1982, I was lay ordained in the Soto Zen tradition and received the name Ekai ('merciful sea') Yumyo ('mysterious depth of knowing')."

Details:

Year: 2010

Dimensions: 19.25" x 25"

Edition: 70

Collection: Buddhist Series