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How to make wood block printings.
1. Tools and materials.
Carving chisels.
Lefthand side. A middle-class set of 7 chisels. "Yoshiharu chisels" recomm
ended.
Righthand side. Professional chisels. There are 1 mm, 2mm, 4.5mm. 6mm, and 8mm
ones.
Nails.
The ordinary nails sold at hardware shops.
Stippling and copying of Buddhist images are made by these nails.
Printing blocks.
They are made of China veneer materials for wood block printings.
We use 4mm and 5.2mm-thick ones.
Printing blocks.
Oil paint, rollers, and baren, these are estimated amounts.
Japanese paper.
We have torinoko paper, gampi paper, and thick Japanese paper, etc.
In the beginning, inexpensive kamakura paper, three baren, will be enough.
How to make.
2. Planning.
a. This is where you suffer the most.
b. Make a sketch on the drawing paper.
Original plan is to be composed roughly.
For finish, sketch minutely with a pencil.
c. The drawing is to be copied to the tracing paper.
Then it will be duplicated with a dark-colored pencil.
d. It will be reproduced to wood blocks.
Lay the carbon paper on the printing block.
Lay the reversed tracing paper on the carbon paper.
Fix it with cellophane adhesive tape.
Copy it from above the reversed tracing paper with a pencil.
e. The printing block is carved.
Overall carving should be done roughly.
About 70% of finishing.
f. Trial printing.
The printing block is to be applied with paint by a roller.
Japanese paper is to be laid on the printing block and be rubbed by
baren.
Baren is to be rubbed at first making circles lightly all over.
Gradually rub the whole part adding more strength.
Japanese paper is to be peeled off quietly from the printing block.
This is the most enjoyable part.
g. Carve it minutely while looking at the trial printing.
Check the entire balance as well as light and darkness.
Sometimes, big modifications will be needed.
h. Full printing.
Method of painting and printing is just the same as the trial printing.
Japanese paper is to be peeled off from the printing block quietly.
Self-satisfaction looking at one's own work for a while.
3. Making collection of wood block printed drawings.
Making collection of drawings is a delightful thing.
Upper column. Collection of wood block printings.
Nine colleagues made three works each, printing nine sheets for each
work, and made a collection of drawings.
It's a handmade collection of drawings of 27 pages.
Lower column. Collection of wood block printings / Koyu.
It's a collection of wood block printings edited by members of Koyu Asso-
ciation (President, Hiroshi Tomihari).
Since it's a collection book of drawings and can be published in numbers
quite easily, lots of people can enjoy seeing the copies.
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10.How to appreciate Buddhist images