Egg tempera overprint. /mokuhanga/

In the printing fever I decided to use egg as a binder for white overprint.
It happened.

The print is moku hanga: "Tesia" from the 4x4 cycle 2021

The block with white layer applied

The paper on top of a block

Pulling up the print

Kuro portfolio print

 New print for the upcoming Kuro/Noir portfolio.
The moku hanga is exclusively printed using few different types of japanese inks playing with its colour, dilution and other properties.
Some various carving techniques + my free/loose printing style.

3 movies about Japanese woodblock

Being (a little) bored about the technical approach to mokuhanga I would like to share with You 3 good stories about ukiyo-e artists. Each movie is separate masterpiece, but there is also a very special relationship between them. Some scenes are breathtaking. I'm sure You will enjoy ;)


1. Kenji Mizoguchi (1946) - "Utamaro and His Five Women"
 

2. Kaneto Shindô (1981) - "Hokusai Manga" also known (?) as "Edo Porn"

3. Masahiro Shinoda (1995) - "Sharaku" 

Click on the title to have a  IMDB reference.
enjoy :)

Anatomy of the water based woodcut.

There's some footage from the studio demonstrating making a woodblock print using the water based method (mokuhanga). It's the final - black colour of four or five runs. I'm using my own made kozo paper, shoe brush and a dry pigments like soot and deep blue.
The movie was made to catch some pleasant moments while making edition, and also to clearly demonstrate  the idea of printing using the water colour and a wooden block.

*Don't worry. This time I'm not using any music;)

1. falling the dry pigment (first blue then black soot) on the moistened, carved  block.



2. applying pigment to the block using the shoe brush (horshair). I'm also using some rice paste to have some binder for the pigment.



3. Here You can see the positioning and treatment of the moistened paper. In this case I'm using thin and very fragile kozo paper. The block is being printed using baren.



4. And we have the final impression.




Following documentation was recorded in 2014 in Olsztyn.

Best regards.
Olek.

Indigo post scriptum.

HI/


It's always good to number the Edition before you make it.



k

Recovering the baren.

Hello. There is small film documenting the magic moment of baren rewrapping.
enjoy :)

Closer look at Wayne Crother's "The Sea of Quiescence 2"

Seen @ MCSG Cracow

 

Small video about my process.

The film is from 2012, recorded at our old academic studio at Olsztyn.
Sorry for the rough quality, credits to Maja for video capture. Enjoy.

Split post.

Some time ago I bought a pretty cool book about Japanese bookbinding. "Japanese Bookbinding - Instructions from a Master Craftsman by Kojiro Ikegami". Good source of informations about Japanese methods of bookbinding. By the way I could learn a lot about Japanese paper. I was thinking about Japanese books, made my own trials of such bindings and I realized that it's useful in modern life too. I binded myself Hiroshi Yoshida's "Japanese Wood Block Printing" PDF this way. !!! woW - this is really pleasant. Not comparable to modern binding. Full flavour of reading provided. I strongly recomend. ;) here are the pictures.

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I work everyday on my prints, watching how it grow. When the print is most beautiful? Maybe now. Prints in stack, wet, straight before the run...

Faces of Woodcut. at BWA Olsztyn. 19 Jan 2012.

I was invited to give a lecture about woodcut printing techniques due to the closing celebration of X Quadriennale of Polish Woodcut and Linocut. I was talking about variety of methods, sensitivities and traditions of this fundamental printmaking technique, also presented my author's process of making a print. It was a great pleasure to talk about beauty and mystery of woodcut.


link

Baren woodcut exhibition.

16.XII.2011, exhibition of woodcuts in Rynek Gallery - Olsztyn.
result of #47 and #49 baren exchanges.


Great show. I am going to visit it togrther with my students, they couldn't arrive at the opening. Thank you all participants and barenforum one of the greatest printmaking comunity on the web.
Image used on the poster Mushrooms - woodcut by Caroline Dwinell.

Participants list:

Baren Exchange #47, coordinator – Maria Arango

Maria Arango * Viza Arlington * Carole Baker * Brad Bateman * Linda Beeman * Claudia Coonen * Eileen Corder * Diane Cutter * Michael Gaffney * Aaron Gillette * Bea Gold * Annette Haines * George Jarvis * Tom Kristensen * Lana Lambert * Preston Lawing * Erin Nolan * Alex Orgren * Patti Phare-Camp * Julio Rodriguez * Lynita Shimizu * Andrea Starkey * Andrew Stone * Olek Wozniak

Baren exchange #49, coordinator – Monica Bright

Eli Griggs * Angela Katona-Batchelor * Maria Arango * Gayle Wohlken * Aaron Gillette * Karma Grotelueschen * Diane Cutter * Christopher Doogan * Rachel Silber * Kalle Pihlajasaari * Monica Bright * Susan Sutherland-Martin * George Jarvis * William Joel * Achim Nicklis * Dale Evans * Scott Robertson * Ruth Egnater * Juergen Stieler * Barbara Mason * Nancy Osadchuk * Marilynn Smith * Patti Phare-Camp * Cyndy Wilson * Graham Stephens * Melea Press * Carole Dwinell * Olek Wozniak * Bronwyn Merritt * Nathan Hillstrom

La noche oscura

Some shots of my woodblock book based on a famous poem La noche oscura by San Juan de la Cruz. My experience in bokashi and preparation for the bigger stuff. I binded 4 books, but its not formally editioned. 8 pages, Alder blocks, Hand printed on Senkwa paper + Fabriano Rosaspina on covers. Hand sewn/binded. Dry pigments, soot, ash + rice paste.

I can't wait to make full edition later /maybe in winter/.