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Japanese Wood-Cutting and Wood-Cut Printing

Mr. T. Tokuno

Washington, 1894

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[Baren] Editor's Introduction

 

Topics covered in this pamphlet:

• Japanese traditional materials and methods:
  • Carving tools
  • Printing tools
  • Pigments
  • Papers
  • Printmaking process
  • Historical data on costs, etc.
• Comparison of Japanese and European methods

Target audience:

• Anybody with an interest in Japanese woodblock printmaking - either the technical, or more general aspects.

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This is a fabulous 'snapshot' of the state of Japanese woodblock printmaking at the end of the 19th century. The Japanese government of the day made a gift to the U.S. National Museum of a complete set of printmaking equipment, including carving and printing tools, pigments, blocks, paper samples - everything involved in the process of making prints. In addition to the materials themselves, illustrated written descriptions of many aspects of the craft were included, and this pamphlet is a detailed summary of those descriptions.

The museum editor who prepared the material for publication seems to have gone to great care to ensure accuracy of the facts and figures involved, being involved in a great deal of correspondence with Mr. Tokuno, his contact in Japan.

This long out-of-print pamphlet is a mine of information to anyone with an interest in the Japanese traditional printmaking methods.