I use copy paper to help force the pigment/paste mixture into the wood and to get the amount of color I desire. The ink and paste needs to also penetrate the wood to create a smooth gradation. It is important to do this several times also before you use your good paper. I do this also- especially for large gradations and it helps to gauge the correct amount of paste and ink. Most printers apply the ink and paste in a line to the block.Do this several times in the beginning to let the moisture penetrate the wood. The idea is that in order for the ink to be printed smoothly as a fade, there cannot be a sharp distinction between the dry and moist areas of the woodblock. The water helps the pigment to spread, the paste helps the pigment to remain in suspension resulting in smooth printing.

The amount of water on the block should be slightly reflective- certainly not a puddle. The zokin is saturated with water and drawn beyond the surface of the block will be inked.You need at least 2 layers of fabric Size of block 2″ x 2.5″ of wood (notice that I rounded the corners and edges) and the piece of cotton fabric 6″ x 8″ Stretch the cotton fabric taut, use flat pushpins to secure. Translated as “rag”, a zokin is a wood block that is covered with a small piece of fabric- preferably white cotton from a t-shirt. Other than a hanga or maru bake (printing brush) and baren, another tool- the zokin is really handy thing to use. Here is a video of me explaining one way to print a gradation for my print #6 (Maryland) from my Appalachian Trail series: However, this technique is generally more time consuming and requires extra skill and patience, but worth it! I have posted an earlier entry using a jig for such an animal.īokashi is great to create a natural illusion of depth- so much so that it’s sometimes difficult to spot their use. Curved or irregularly-shaped bokashis are particularly difficult.

There are additional bokashis (I count twelve in total): the far shoreline, near hill, far mountains, beach, two in the sky, and even on the house rooflines. I am guessing that the central double sided bokashi band of blue you see in the bay was created from two passes- one for the top and one overlapped in the middle to create the lower gradation. The deep ultramarine blue pigment you see in the water is reminiscent of many landscapes of the ukiyo-e period. To the right are examples of bokashi in Hiroshige’s “The Beach at Takashi in Izumi Province”, 1853. Bokashi works really well by itself, but also as an overlay on flat printing. It can be intimidating to the beginner and it’s not the easiest thing to do as the technique involves several additional variables beyond beta (flat tone) printing. Bokashi or Graduated Printing (as many of you know) is a very distinct feature of Japanese woodblock printmaking ( mokuhanga) that was developed during the ukiyo-e Edo period.

Moku hanga examples