I’ve been having trouble getting a good even color in my latest woodblock print and I have been trying to figure out why this is happening. As far as I can tell these are the variables that can affect the evenness of the color:
Baren - pressure, quality of baren
Pigment - some colors are naturally grainy (e.g. French Ultramarine Blue)
Nori/Water/Pigment - ratio
Wood - type, grain
Paper - differences in texture, sizing, and fiber content
Admittedly I am working with an inexpensive baren and will need to upgrade there. A better quality baren is sure to improve the evenness in tone. As for the pigment, I have used mineral violet in many watercolor paintings and have not found it grainy. Yellow ochre pigment is a bit grainy, but seems to be less noticeable (probably because is it a lighter color). Likewise, I am using a similar nori/water/pigment ratio as I did in lonely dog which did not produce this blotchy effect. I have also tried using more or less water/pigment/nori with little difference. As for wood, I am using shina which is smooth with tight, even grain. So paper seems to be the one factor that could be causing the blotchiness.
Here are three types of paper all printed in the same way. The mineral violet seems to be a bit less blotchy on the nishinochi paper. Nishinochi is made with 90% Northern kozo and 10% acid free pulp. The gampi is made with 100% gampi and the Exhizen Koso is 100% kozo. All of these paper look and feel very different from one another.
After I get a better baren I will try this experiment again and see if the paper still makes such a difference.
October 14, 2007 at 9:35 am
Hi Annette,
I am a big fan of blotchiness, and yours looks great, but I agree it’s nice to be able to make a smooth colour. I don’t think your paper or baren can explain the effect you are getting. I think it is an excess of water, or conversely a lack of starch.
I would be looking at your nori, is it able to defy gravity as you tansfer it to the block, or is kinda runny? How old is it?
Perhaps you are working with nori that has lost its stickiness. It needs to hold up on the block to evenly carry the colour. Don’t premix the colour into the nori as this will break down the starch. You need to mix colour and starch with each new impression.
Make sure the brush is not wet from cleaning. The bristles need to be slightly moist to get the best from the brush but not wet. Likewise the block needs to be damp, but not wet. The ink is one last source of excess water. If you are using a lot of water to carry the pigment, you may need to let it dry out and get a little more viscous.
More starch less water is the way to go. If you need dense colour, you will need to print twice and this will also reduce the blotchiness
Good luck, you’ll get there.
October 14, 2007 at 5:24 pm
Hi Annette,
I agree with Tom that it’s probably excess water. It’s astonishing to discover how dry you can print with the Japanese method and still get great coverage. The baren matters too, though. I have three baren now, a Murasaki bamboo-covered baren (the most versatile), a ball-bearing baren (very strong and powerful) and a plastic Kurosaki baren. Each prints very differently and I find myself using different baren for different effects. The Kurosaki baren makes a very grainy print, which sometimes is just what you want. What baren are you using?
Great dog prints!
October 16, 2007 at 9:47 pm
Thanks to all who responded to question both on my blog and on the Baren Forum. I got so many wonderful suggestions and I’m in the process of trying them all. I found that I got less blotchiness when I:
-didn’t add any water at all. Many of you cautioned against too much water
and since I am using tube watercolor, I was able to get enough viscosity
with just the watercolor and nori.
-made sure my nori was fresh - defying gravity
-printed the block twice - this worked really well at evening out the
blotches.
-printed on thinner paper.
-learned to appreciate the blotches. Actually I already did, but more so
now. I just wanted this particular area smooth so the thin carved out lines
would stand out.
I still plan to try different barens (I have a Murasaki baren on order and
may be able to borrow another type from the school). I also haven’t tried
alcohol with the pigment, but plan to try that as well.
I will post the resulting print in my next blog entry.
Thanks again.
Annette