[Baren]: The mailing list / discussion forum for woodblock printmaking.

Baren Digest              Thursday, 20 August 1998      Volume 04 : Number 250

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From: Gayle Wohlken <blueman@pantek.com>
Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 09:37:48 -0400
Subject: [Baren 1395] Re: Baren Digest V4 #249 

Patsy wrote regarding type fonts for the Vandercook Press:
> What types (excuse the pun) of
> fonts do you have? 

I have a basement full in their cabinets and I'm sure there's
something that will look nice.  The professor who owned the
press before I got it did regular printings of poetry chapbooks.
He called it "Bits Press" because his first press was a atable
model.  He graduated to larger models but kept the same 
press name.  

Patsy, you wrote, regarding the exchange that you would like
to put some

>  form of hand stitching &/or intaglio with the woodblock?

I don't know how others feel about this, but I guess I have to admit
my feeling is that  our exchange should be woodblocks only because we
are a woodblock forum, but I sure am curious as to what you are doing
with stitching and intaglio!!!  That sounds intriguing!!!  Do you have
a website with any of your stuff up there for us to look at?

Gayle Wohlken

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From: David Bull <davebull@woodblock.com>
Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 22:39:41 +0900
Subject: [Baren 1396] Documentary ... 

A couple of you have asked about the documentary ...

It's still way too early to know anything about when this will be
broadcast.  At present, all that exists is an agreement by the network
to purchase it ... when it is finished.  That is expected to be sometime
next January.  As I mentioned, the first two days of filming are done,
with lots more to follow.

The weekly program is called 'Ningen Gekijo' (Human Theatre), and it's
on the TV Tokyo network.  I'll let you know about broadcast, tape 
copies, etc. when the time comes ...

***

Jack wrote:
> ...is that 80 hours for the entire issue of a single print?  
> That seems very fast. How many prints do you do in an edition anyway?

That 80 hours is for the whole shebang - from starting the hanshita
preparation, up to the point where one of my part-timers comes over to
pick up the finished stack for shipping it out.

When I started this project, I worked out all the costs and prices on
the basis of having 100 collectors.  I could have shot for one
collector, and charged 1,000,000 yen ... or a larger number of
collectors and a correspondingly lower price.  I settled on a price of
10,000 yen - and a target of 100 collectors.  

So I started to make (and still make) 100 copies each month.  In
addition to this 100 for the collectors I add a dozen or so to send out
as freebies to the people working together on the project with me: my
two employees who mat/wrap/ship the prints, the lady who does
translations for the monthly essays, the block planer, the paper maker,
the sizer, etc. etc.  I also want a few copies for my own use, and of
course there are the inevitable spoiled copies during printing ...  

So most months I put 130 sheets into the stack.  If the design is
difficult and I expect more problems with registration or proofing, I
put in a few more.

As far as that plan for getting 100 collectors I have to say that I
didn't get anywhere near that many at first.  By the end of the first
year I think I had seven, and by the end of the second year I think it
was about 15.  Year by year it slowly built up, with quite a large
increase coming at the half-way point, when the media really did a great
job of getting people out to the exhibition.

The total at present is just slightly over 100, and 18 of those people
are taking two prints each - a back number, plus the newest one - so
that they can 'catch up' with the whole set.

So in the tenth year of the project, I finally reached the original
target of 100 collectors ... just in time for it to all come to an end
in a few more months.  Then of course, the collector list drops down to
zero, and it will be time to start the whole process all over again with
a new series.  How many years will it take to build up to a 'livable'
level this time?   Who knows ...

Dave

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From: jimandkatemundie@juno.com (James G Mundie)
Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 12:58:20 -0400
Subject: [Baren 1397] mixed media in the folio? 

Patsy the reckless perfectionist wrote:
>btw, I understand that this is a woodblock group and these are all 
>going to be woodblock prints, but how do all of you feel about a little 
>mixed media in the form of hand stitching &/or intaglio with the woodblock?

Hmmm.... this is just my opinion, but I would rather exclude media which
fall outside of the traditional woodblock sphere.  Hand-coloring is fine,
and I suppose stitching of some sort wouldn't be unheard of; but if one
starts to bring in intaglio (unless the impression comes from wood) or
litho, etc., the print becomes something else entirely.  

One could make the argument, I suppose, that as long as woodblock
accounted for a majority of the printing that would be acceptable.  Being
something of a purist, however, I would rather see all of the _printing_
come from a woodblock.

Incidentally, Patsy... your formal declaration of commitment to the
[Baren] exchange brings the current number of confirmed participants to
twenty-one.

***

Dave, congratulations on all the much deserved media brouhaha and
ballyhoo.  I hope we will all get the opportunity to see the final
documentary at some point.   I haven't yet had a chance to read this
latest issue of the _Hyaku-nin Issho_, but it is on my list of "things to
do" for today.  It's always a pleasure to read "From Halifax to Hamura"!
 
Na/r lagai/ Dia bhur la/mh,
James Mundie, Philadelphia USA

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From: Graham Scholes <gscholes@islandnet.com>
Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 16:49:30 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [Baren 1398] Re: mixed media in the folio? 

>Patsy  wrote:
>>btw, I understand that this is a woodblock group and these are all
>>going to be woodblock prints, but how do all of you feel about a little
>>mixed media in the form of hand stitching &/or intaglio with the woodblock?

James wrote....
>Hmmm.... this is just my opinion, but I would rather exclude media which
>fall outside of the traditional woodblock sphere.  Hand-coloring is fine,

Graham Writes.

Kind of agree with James here.  I myself am busting to take woodblock into
a broader scope but think we should hold to the line for this exchange.

Cheers

Graham

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From: April Vollmer/John Yamaguchi <aprilvollmer@altavista.net>
Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 21:02:40 -0400
Subject: [Baren 1399] Well deserved! 

Yes indeed, congratulations, Dave. And thank you for sending the
newsletter...I have been enjoying it, as well. I look forward to the TV
show...what's next? Fame and fortune for our fearless leader!

This is going to be a fabulous print exchange...I like black as well as the
next  artist, but to me the great thing about hanga is working with
pigments...mine will be lots of colors! And a little peculiar...I think
this prjoject definitely has a homey approach, so in spite of my partiality
to hanga, Patsy's embroidery sounds cool to me...

April Vollmer

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From: Patsy Wilson <patsy@scc.net>
Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 22:54:33 -0500
Subject: [Baren 1400] Re: mixed media in the folio? 

> Graham Writes.
> Kind of agree with James here.  I myself am busting to take woodblock
> into a broader scope but think we should hold to the line for this exchange.

I agree w/you both, but I was just-a wondering.  I am so excited about
seeing all the works together, and on second thought, I do think they
would all "language" with each other more intricately if they were all
of the pure surface woodblock form.  (my inner intaglio & fiber-obsessed
ex-art student is squirming, but will have to find a side project, as I
*am* excited that my new press will be here in the next few months)
James, you mentioned the thought of wood intaglio?  wicked man!  that
sounds great, never tried it, but I'm sure it would look fantastic --
thicker paper/taller embossments, controlling the color on chip-carved
areas (angle airbrushing?), grungy splinters catching the wrong color,
wo-hoo!).  also, thanks for the confirmation on being #21.

another thought... (I can't remember if I mentioned this before or not,
sorry) Are these images going to have space on the net after their
gathering?  I think it would be superb for everyone who didn't have the
chance to participate to be able to see them, and it would encourage
next year's folio to be even larger.

walk brightly,

Patsy
partime fruitbat

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From: Patsy Wilson <patsy@scc.net>
Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 22:54:37 -0500
Subject: [Baren 1401] Re: Well deserved! 

April Vollmer/John Yamaguchi wrote:
> This is going to be a fabulous print exchange...I like black as well as the
> next  artist, but to me the great thing about hanga is working with
> pigments...mine will be lots of colors!

April, I have to say, I am in sincere awe of your color/form awareness.
I spent a lot of time at your website, and I was just thrilled!
prussian blue, bright secondaries & tans, good lord, what vibrancy!  If
for any reason you pass through the south before the end of the year,
you might want to detour into Chattanooga, TN for their I-Max movie,
"Creatures of the Deep".  I am a great fan of jellyfish tranluscencies,
but I've only been able to do that so far with my monoprints -- I
haven't yet achieved editioning of that kind of ephemera. =

to answer Gayle's thoughts on the stitching, I'm going to hold off on
that for now, but in the past I have used it on select woodblock prints
as another form of markmaking.  I removed it from the "sewing"
perspective and hand-stitched lines that moved out with the already
existing printed lines, sometime outlining whole cuts, sometimes giving
an angle shadow (red below every fuchsia mark) or contrast (purple at
the tips of teal marks.)  I didn't always follow preexisting lines, but
I always treated it as it's own color run.  ....also, no print webpage
yet, but hopefully before the year's up.  (I have to put up my jewelry
site first, and I'm hating HTML  <g>).

sleepy me,

Patsy

Seek and you shall be seeking, find and you shall be found.
discovery\=/creativity

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From: Graham Scholes <gscholes@islandnet.com>
Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 22:44:40 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [Baren 1402] Re: Well deserved! 

Patsy wrote....
 >....also, no print webpage yet, but hopefully before the year's up.  
>(I have to put up my jewelry site first, and I'm hating HTML  <g>).

I use a Mac and don't have to even contend with HTML
Using Claris Home Page is as simple as using a word processor, with a
slightly bigger learning curve. Dave uses the same program.
If you are using an IBM thingy then I'm sure there must be a similar program.

I have compiled my web site if you have not looked at it yet.

Cheers

Graham

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From: Jack Reisland <jreis@ptinet.net>
Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 23:36:31 -0700
Subject: [Baren 1403] Re: Various points ... 

> Gayle wrote:
> >regarding Dave's last one point lesson:
> >Is there any way you could include photos of this process?

Similar Japanese waterstone miniature slips (as these things for sharpening
the inside of gouges are called) are available from the GarrettWade
woodworking tool catalog for a set of four different shapes in 4000 grit
for $20.95. They are at:

                GarrettWade
                161 Avenue of the Americas
                NY, NY 10013
                1.800.221.2942

    Jack Reisland

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From: David Bull <davebull@woodblock.com>
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 1998 15:53:06 +0900
Subject: [Baren 1404] Web sites ... 

Patsy wrote:
>Are these images going to have space on the net after their
>gathering?  

I hadn't jumped that far ahead yet, but it certainly would be the next
logical step to scan the folio and put it into an 'exhibition' on the
[Baren] Home Page.  I think you can expect to see it there a few hours
after the package arrives in my hot little hands ...

***

Patsy and Graham wrote:
>...  I'm hating HTML  <g>).

>Using Claris Home Page is as simple as using a word processor, with a
>slightly bigger learning curve. Dave uses the same program.

Graham is correct on this.  Well over 95% of everything you see at
'woodblock.com' is done with Claris Home Page.  The only time I have to
play with the actual HTML code itself is when I do something a bit
'special', like those flashing negatives on the 'Who is Baren?' page.

Claris Home Page is not the most sophisticated web site builder around,
but it's clean, quick, efficient ... and cheap.  I highly recommend it
to anybody with a Mac.

Anybody else have a recommendation for a similar program for Patsy to
use on her Windows95 system?

Dave

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From: StudioJNC@aol.com
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 1998 04:24:45 EDT
Subject: [Baren 1405] Re: Various points ... 

To Jack;
Thanks for the address, I have not seen any of these stones advertised in any
of my catalogs. I will send for them today.

To Patsy;
Would love to see some of your prints . You sound so very creative. Also think
the print exchange should be pure woodprints. 

To Dave;
Congrats on your new fame. I certainly hope that we will be able to view the
film once it has been completed. I hope that anyone out there in the Baren
group who has had a special show, outstanding publicity or whatever, witll
share it with the Baren group. It feels like family out there !!!!!

Jeanne

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From: Cucamongie@aol.com
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 1998 08:04:30 EDT
Subject: [Baren 1406] hi, I'm a new member of Baren, etc 

I'd like to introduce myself to the rest of you woodblock folks.  My name
is Sarah Hauser, and I currently live in the New York area. I began learning
how to make Japanese-style woodblock prints about a year ago (before that, I
had been painting and making lino-cuts and monotypes), and I have become
totally immersed in this incredible medium.  I use primarily animal imagery
(both domestic & wild animals).  I was referred to this forum by one of your
members, April Vollmer, who I just finished taking a great class from.  This
medium involves so many technical factors (cutting, tools, printing, paper,
etc), and I am looking forward to sharing and exchanging information --- 

Sarah Hauser

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From: <hudson@panther.middlebury.edu>
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 1998 08:36:52 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: [Baren 1407] Re: hi, I'm a new member of Baren, etc 

Dear Karen,
As another fairly new Baren member I'd just like to say welcome.   I've
found much of the discussion here of great interest and there are
wonderful things in the encyclopedia!   Best regards,

Ray H

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End of Baren Digest V4 #250
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