Sei Shonagon
from Genomic
24" x 36"
acrylic on canvas
2007
Collection of Lyondell Oil, Houston, Texas
Exhibitions
Bering & James, Houston, Texas, Genomic, November 2 - 23, 2007
A Phase Two canvas in the Genomic Works sequence, Sei Shōnagon unfolds like a scroll of collected impressions. A monochrome blue portrait anchors the field—long-haired, contemplative, rendered with quiet clarity. To the left, botanical linework and leafy patterns thread organic rhythm into the composition. To the right, anatomical text and map-like overlays drift across a purple band: STENO-CLIO MASTOID, PARIETAL—terms that feel both clinical and poetic.


Further down the field, pink-orange gradients and abstract textures soften the structure, while architectural and mechanical diagrams in blue and red close the canvas with precision. The genome here is observational—less emotional, more archival. A system of fragments that feel like entries in a list: things noticed, remembered, and quietly held.


Sei Shōnagon thinks in layers. A canvas of reflection, taxonomy, and the beauty of recorded detail.