Today's postings

  1. [Baren 43626] Inspired by Japan update (Barbara Mason)
  2. [Baren 43627] Re: Inspired by Japan update (Diana Moll)
  3. [Baren 43628] Re: Inspired by Japan update (Barbara Mason)
  4. [Baren 43629] Japan benefit update (Barbara Mason)
  5. [Baren 43630] Baren Member blogs: Update Notification (Blog Manager)
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Message 1
From: Barbara Mason
Date: Mon, 27 Jun 2011 15:27:08 GMT
Subject: [Baren 43626] Inspired by Japan update
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Good Morning printers!
I am opening and organizing the prints today and will scan the ones I do not
have info for
Please send the colophon into to me to be sure I have it
I have about 2/3 of the promised work with more promised in the next week or so
We are ready to really start promotion on the Tsunami relief benefit, I will be
working on this all week to get things more organized and the info onto the web
as well as the brochure. We still need someone to write wonderful things about
the Baren so if you have writing talent we can use it
more very soon... things are moving along.
Cut and print!
My best to you all and thanks for taking part in the fundraiser!
Barbara
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Message 2
From: Diana Moll
Date: Mon, 27 Jun 2011 15:33:20 GMT
Subject: [Baren 43627] Re: Inspired by Japan update
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did you get my colophon?

Diana Moll

PS some writing ability, maybe I can help?
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Message 3
From: Barbara Mason
Date: Mon, 27 Jun 2011 15:40:47 GMT
Subject: [Baren 43628] Re: Inspired by Japan update
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Maybe...I will post soon on what I need.. .sorry to be so disorganized but it is
a lot to get through and by the end of the week I should have it in hand
Barbara
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Message 4
From: Barbara Mason
Date: Mon, 27 Jun 2011 21:27:20 GMT
Subject: [Baren 43629] Japan benefit update
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I have work from the following people... so if you sent it more than a week or
so ago, you might want to track it
Barbara

Alexander (olek) Wozniak
Amanda Gordon Miller
Andrew Stone
Andy English
Angelo Rodrigues
April Vollmer
Ruth Egnatgor
Bea Gold
Carol Chapel
Carol Lyons
Carole Dwinell
Chris Doogan
Clare Caulfield
Diana Moll
Eileen Corder
Gayle Wohlken
Guadalupe Victorica
Jeanne Norman Chase
Jennifer Martindale
Leigh Beatty
Linda Beeman
Louise Cass
Lynita Shimizu
Maria Arango Diener
Mark Mason
mary caulfield
Mary Grassell
Melea Press
Michelle Morrell
Paulo Symes
Raymond Hudson
Sonia Jensen
Tom Kristensen
viza Arlington
Maria Periera

If you have contacted me, no problems..if not get going
I need work from the following folks

Aaron Gillette
Andrea Starkey
Ayesha Vemuri
Barbara Carr
Ben Szoller
Carlota Santamaria
Carol L. Myers
Clive Lewis
Cyndy Wilsoyn
Diane Cutter
Ellen Shipley
Erin K. Nolan
Frank Trueba
Gillyin Gatto
Jean Womack
Jenny Kelly-Wlodarczyk
Julio Rodriguez
Kalle Pihlajasaari
Kolene Dietz
Le Green
lynne hubner
Margot Rocklen

Mike Lyon
Oscar Bearinger
Preston Lawing
RAKESH BANI
Renee Ugrin
Richard Stockham
Sarah Hauser
Sharen Linders
Sharri LaPierre
Sylvia Taylor
Terri Peart
Tina Browder

Wouter ten Broek

Digest Appendix

Postings made on [Baren] members' blogs
over the past 24 hours ...

Subject: The newest venture - kakegami ...
Posted by: Dave Bull

OK, enough teasing ... let's see what the new bench is all about, and who it is for! Meet Mrs. Yasue Tsushima ...

And, to immediately answer your obvious question - Is she the new 'apprentice'? - I think the answer is 'not really'; at least not in the sense that she is here to learn how to be a professional printer. At this point, we're not thinking that far ahead.

Yesterday I posted about a recent visit to the local beauty shop, where I had chatted with Abe-san the hairdresser about Mokuhankan. She is basically familiar with my work (and has a display set of my prints in her shop), and I bent her ear about not being able to find printers.

She listened to me, and we started talking about what was involved in the work ... how difficult was it? She paused in her cutting, and showed me some of the decorations in her shop. The place is full of ornamental 'knick-knacks': artificial flowers, origami displays, hand-woven baskets, etc. etc. These had all been made by local ladies, women sitting at home while their husband and kids are out. I'm not sure what the situation is like in other countries, but here in modern Japan, unemployment is at historical highs, and there is a surplus of labour everywhere. And with large numbers of graduates being unable to find jobs, housewives are sort of expected to pull back from the market somewhat, to leave as many jobs as possible open for regular 'breadwinners'. So anyway, the point is that we have a situation where there is a vast pool of extremely competent people sitting around with nothing to do. These women don't want a full-time job, as they have family responsibilities to cover. But if there were a job available that: made use of their 'handy' skills, allowed them to fix their own working schedule, allowed them to stay home when the kid is suddenly sick from school, paid them a reasonable amount per hour, and etc. etc. ... they would be very interested.

OK ... that's one side of the equation, but we're not talking about artificial paper flowers here, we're talking about woodblock printmaking, one of the most difficult and highly trained jobs on the planet. Right?

On the face of it, that is indeed true. My own skills are very hard-won, and when you look over my entire output, you have to admit that this is not something that a 'housewife' can sit down and just pick up in a few minutes.

Heh-heh ...

Here she is again:

You can see scattered here and there among those two snapshots some small woodblocks (and there is a box of them on the desk just above her head). These are old blocks that I picked up in flea markets here and there. They were originally used to print kakegami, wrapping paper for Japanese gift confectionery. Here are a couple of images I just scooped with a Google search, showing modern papers of this type:


[Long item has been trimmed at this point. The full blog entry can be viewed here]

This item is taken from the blog Mokuhankan Conversations.
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Subject: June Century
Posted by: Andrew Stone

Courtesy of Expresso Beans
Louis Rhead, Literary Poster for the Century Magazine,
June 1896
, stone color lithograph.

I love this print and it's one of the few pieces of original art that I own. It's a splendid example of "American" Art Nouveau printed during the heydey of color stone lithography. (Rhead is actually English and part of the distinguished family of artists and potters living on both sides of the Atlantic) He moved to the US at the end of the 19th Century and was among a handful of very influential and successful artists working in this style during it's rather brief popularity in this country.
The curving, thorny rose brambles contrast with the flowing lines of the hair and clothes and it is printed in just a few colors--orange,teal, purple,red, yellow and black but achieves a richness and complexity well beyond that number.
A better image can be seen here:
http://www.lessing-photo.com/dispimg.asp?i=03080857+&cr=2&cl=1

This marks my 100th post.

I don't know that that actually means very much as I don't think I picked up any readers until #75 or so but still it seems like a little milestone.

It does serve as a moment to pause and see what I've done so far and to begin to think about what I want to do next.
Lacrime di Rospo started out hoping to be a farming blog stemming from my small organic farming venture--that never really took off--before we left Italy to move . . .
[Long item has been trimmed at this point. The full blog entry can be viewed here]

This item is taken from the blog Lacrime di Rospo.
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Subject: Linocut icons... again!
Posted by: Sherrie Y

Duck, goose, carousel, train! Still to come: deer, fish, cowboys and grain! Printmaking reports here at ol' Brush and Baren have been on the slim side lately. Due to The Way of Things, I find myself slammed with contract illustration projects and workshop preps and paltry little time for linocuts. Between you and me, I'm a tad grumpy about it. You can imagine, then, the cheer I found in a

[This was a summary of the original entry. The full entry can be viewed here]

This item is taken from the blog Brush and Baren.
'Reply' to Baren about this item.