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

Baren Digest            Wednesday, 30 December 1998    Volume 05 : Number 390

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From: Jean Eger <jeaneger@LanMinds.Com>
Date: Tue, 29 Dec 1998 23:40:51 -0800
Subject: [Baren 2426] Re: What's happening? 

Hello all,
Did everyone quit writing, or did I get cut off the discussion group?  I
guess is is probably just Christmas vacation and time for a hiatus.  This
Christmas break is a good time to go back and re-read Baren, because there
is a gold mine of printmaking information here.

But I am still wondering..how are Dave's adventures with the press and the
visit to the Emperor and the Christmas vacation visit from the beautiful
daughters going?  What image has Graham decided to do in order to diversify
his upcoming show?  Did Gayle ever get back into town?  And to Richard in
Kyoto, how do you sign unnumbered editions?  Do you just sign them #1, #2,
#3, or just leave numbers off altogether?

I have a "chop" which I plan to scan and offer to the Japanese contingent
of Baren to translate.  It was made for me in Oakland at a Chinese street
fair for $25 about five years ago.  It is a stamp made out of stone, with a
tiny sculpture of a horse on top, that comes in a satin case.  I am not
sure what is the proper use for this.  Should it be stamped right on the
picture itself, or on the outside margin where the signature goes?  What is
the appropriate use of such a stamp.  I hope the word "chop" is appropriate
and not insulting.

Thank you, Julio, for saying my web site led you to Baren.  Basically my
web site is educational for printmaking beginners, plus a place to display
my prints and some others.  I haven't tried very hard to push sales there
yet.  

Jean

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From: "David Stones" <stones@mb.i-chubu.ne.jp>
Date: Wed, 30 Dec 1998 19:06:19 +0900
Subject: [Baren 2427] Re: What's happening? 

Dear Jean,

Yes, I think everyone has gone away for the holidays but I've this laptop with
me and your question on that "chop" or seal can be answered - at least from the
Japanese point of view. If you take a look at my prints in the encyclopedia,
you'll see a small red seal in the left or right-hand bottom corner of each work
(not in the margin). This is my "pen-name" seal with a small crest and my
pen-name in Kanji (Chinese characters) included. I usually sign the print below
the seal. I've use this idea for a long time to "sign" work as, in Japan, the
personal seal and not a hand-written signature is used on all official documents
etc.

I've just followed the "local" ways and had a seal made of boxwood. I have
another for my personal (business use) and one for private use (both of these
registered as official "signatures") and wo is me if I forget one or other when
I go to the bank etc.! The one you have seems to fit the "pen-name" use as it
has a design (although I've not seen it of course, just read your text) and
could be used on artwork. Some people here carve quite a few seals over time and
use them as I do. On old woodblock prints of course, you'll find seals, both in
black and red, showing the publisher/artist/(and sometimes) artisan's.

Anyway, on (mostly traditional) artwork now in Japan you'll find a seal or maybe
two - almost always in vermilion - and these have either the name of the artist
(or pen-name) etc. carved into them. On Chinese works, the seal(s) can be quite
large and can often dominate a work. I try to just keep things "there but not
there" except for one print where I actually cut a hole in the block for the
seal as the vermilion seal ink I was using was the real stuff, and oily so, if I
used it on top of the water-based inks, I got a nice "edge of oily whatever...
since then I've changed to a different seal ink and have had no problems so far.

Hope this is a help, Happy New Year, print on...

Dave S

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End of Baren Digest V5 #390
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