Naoko Matsubara 松原直子

These expressive woodcut illustrations articulate the serenity central to the 1854 book Walden, Henry David Thoreau’s idealized account of life on Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts. More than a century later, Matsubara was also inspired by New England’s natural beauty. Here a willow tree merges with its own reflection, emphasizing a sense of isolation, while hands reaching for peapods highlight fleeting moments of abundance. Vigorous lines energize these illustrations, giving them life.

—WC