[Baren]: The mailing list / discussion forum for woodblock printmaking. Baren Digest Thursday, 12 March 1998 Volume 02 : Number 093 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: April Vollmer & John Yamaguchi Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 23:19:08 -0400 Subject: [Baren 471] Re: R. Steiner Regarding the Steiner show: seems very interesting, BUT, it seems they keep all the prints that aren't sold! I was a little reluctant to send a really good print, or something from a small edition, if it wasn't going to be returned! What do you think? Thank you, David, for putting up my web page, it is a great way to be in touch with people....I just heard from someone who bought a print of mine a year ago! (one of the 'quiet' members). I enjoyed your page, then I realized it was attached to another page, and another, and another....a huge resource that it will take a long time to explore! I did check your page on Gosho, I guess that's where I got my 8-strand baren...(can't read the Japanese label!) a WONDERFUL tool. Do you use the thin plastic coverings over the baren-kawa? I found they wrinkled a bit, but probably work better than scotch tape for repairing a worn cover....I have a lot of trouble recovering the barens....I would love to have Gosho do it, but Japan is too far to send my precious baren! And Matt Brown, it is nice to make your acquaintance! You had a long phone call with my teacher, Bill Paden, no? And don't have time to teach a hanga class to elder hostel this year! I spoke to the Elder Hostel people, too, who tried to get me to teach, but it didn't work out for me either. April Vollmer http://www.ulster.net/~vollmerf/april/ ------------------------------ From: Wolfenhnd Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 08:59:46 EST Subject: [Baren 472] Printmaking Degree Programs Has anyone on the list participated in and/or graduated from a Printmaking Degree Program (Bachelor's Degree or higher)? I've been accepted into the program at Buffalo State College (as a Junior) and I'm wondering what to expect from it. I have a small etching press at home and have been teaching myself monotypes and collagraphs for several years and am looking forward to exploring other techniques in a classroom environment. I'd be interested in hearing about your experiences in similar programs. (BTW, I'm in my 40's, no longer a kid, and not only looking forward to this but damned thankful for the chance!) - -giselle ------------------------------ From: David Bull Date: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 08:27:11 +0900 Subject: [Baren 473] Re: Various postings ... Matt posted this: > From Richard Steiner and the Kyoto Woodprint Association ... > ... We are in love with our medium, the oldest of the print > techniques. It is the most flexible creatively, the simplest > in terms of tools and materials, the one most available to > young and old, amateur and professional alike, the warmest, > most approachable and most satisfying. I sure hope Richard decides to get involved with [Baren]. I want to use this quote on the home page! When I was speaking with him by telephone the other day, he mentioned to me that although he has a computer and 'net connection, he has not been using it. I guess he has been reading a lot of newspaper stories that focus on the unpleasant things that can be found out there, and has developed the impression that the internet is just not the kind of place that nice people hang out. One of my print collectors also said the same kind of thing to me 'David, what are you doing fooling around with that 'dirty' stuff?' It seems a negative impression of cyberspace has very much become implanted in the mind of the general public. Matt posted Richard's email address the other day. Should some of us drop him a note encouraging him to 'come on in' and get involved? Nothin' 'dirty' going on in [Baren]! >From April: > Do you use the thin plastic coverings over the baren-kawa? > I found they wrinkled a bit, but probably work better than > scotch tape for repairing a worn cover....I have a lot of > trouble recovering the barens....I would love to have Gosho > do it, but Japan is too far to send my precious baren! Do you mean the thin teflon sheets? I have tried them, but have to say that the negative side - the added thickness to the covering - far outweighs the rather minimal benefit. Yes they do make the baren slide smoothly, but camellia oil will do that job quite well. And as far as making the cover last longer, I found that this wasn't the case. The wear and tear on the cover actually comes from the inside - the pressure of the little bumps of the coil digging into the bamboo skin. Putting a protective cover on the _outside_ can do nothing to help this. As far as the recovering job goes ... yes that's something that we all struggle with, for a long long time. It takes _such_ a lot of practice until you can tie it even close to 'properly'. And when it's not done well, and the skin is too loose, the baren has a very poor response. The only way to get better is to practice as much as possible; don't avoid the job - change the skin as soon as it becomes worn. I was quite stupid about this in the early days, using tape and shims and trying to get each one to last as long as possible ... trying to avoid the inevitable as long as I could ... It's not the right way to go about things. The ability to tie the baren skin is very much a 'badge of honour' among printers in the traditional scene here, and that's not just some foolish pride. A poorly tied baren = poor printmaking. A good comparison might be with a developing violin player. Think of the sound a good player makes ... now think of the sound a beginner makes. _That's_ what a poorly tied baren is doing to your prints! "Say Mister, How do I get to Carnegie Hall ....." >From -giselle: > (BTW, I'm in my 40's, no longer a kid, and not only looking > forward to this but damned thankful for the chance!) Welcome to [Baren], Giselle. I don't know about this 'no longer a kid' stuff ... Who wants to be a 'kid'? If my own experience is any guide, you should be just coming up to the good part! Dave P.S. There have been a number of 'welcomes' recently... For those who are interested, [Baren] membership now stands at 21 members. Still a very small (may I say 'elite'?) group ... ------------------------------ From: Phil Bivins Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 20:24:35 -0500 Subject: [Baren 474] Re: Printmaking Degree Programs Re: (from Wolfenhnd) Welcome to Baren. Wanted to mention that I am in my forty's (will be 47 March 21) and have just recently taken a Printmaking course at the local community college. It's great! I too would like to get involved in a Printmaking program and may very well do so. I have looked into the possibility. I feel I'm starting just at the right time. Take care and good luck with your program. Phil ------------------------------ From: Phil Bivins Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 20:27:08 -0500 Subject: [Baren 475] Re: R. Steiner April, I visited your webpage and really liked your work. Welcome to Baren. I'm new to woodblock printing or printmaking in general. I have learned a great deal, just from hanging out on this site. Hope to hear more from you. Thanks, Phil ------------------------------ From: David Bull Date: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 10:29:28 +0900 Subject: [Baren 476] Re: Chinese stuff Sorry for the multiple postings today, but ... Dan wrote: > I can't rember the English language sources I read on the Chinees > printmaking but the shop photographs showed literaly dozenss of wood > bits per impression... each stem, leaf, flower petal or group of flower > petals was a single block. I just got off the phone to Gosho-san, and while I was talking to him I asked about this Chinese printmaking. He tells me that Dan is right on this, and that most of the work (colour printing anyway) is done with small scraps, rather than full size blocks. The paper used is generally known as 'gasen' - very thin, no sizing. Very light 'baren' pressure is used. He gave me more details on the Chinese baren, and I'll update my Encyclopedia page later this afternoon to include the additional knowledge ... Gosho-san, by the way, is a real repository of information on _anything_ to do with woodblock work. He is sitting on a library of many hundreds of books on the subject, along with a huge collection of tools and stuff. He mentioned this morning that he's just about ready to come 'on line', and expects to be up and running in a few weeks. Only one problem ... how's your Japanese? *** > Dave: where do you find the time?! 8 hours for sleep 1 hour for daily swim, etc. That leaves 15 hours each day available for print related activities. With 30 days in the month, that's 450 hours per month. That's a lot of time! There are two ways to look at this: I have _no_ free time at all, and 'work' seven days a week from morning until night ... or ... I spend _all_ my time just 'playing around'. I guess they're both true! Dave ------------------------------ End of Baren Digest V2 #93 **************************