Postcard from Tubac

This image is far more about style than place. Although I took the original photo in Tubac, AZ, the finished product here is a digital sketch done in the style of Japanese woodblock printing.

The term for this style is “ Moku Hanga” (木版画).  Although similar to woodcut in western printmaking, the Moku Hanga technique differs in that it uses water-based inks—as opposed to western woodcut, which often use oil-based inks. The Japanese water-based inks provide a wide range of vivid colors, glazes, and transparency.

Before the invention of moveable type, Moku Hanga was also used to print books in China and Japan. The first printed books were seen in Japan in the 8th century in Buddhist temples. Much later, around the 17h century, woodblock printing was used to create works of art…and like Western painting techniques, there were many schools and movements based on style.

Here is how it works: The image is first drawn onto paper, then glued face-down onto a plank of wood, usually cherry. The wood is then cut away, based on the drawing outlines. A small wooden hard object called a baren is used to press or burnish the paper against the inked woodblock to apply the ink to the paper. Although this may have been done purely by hand at first, complex wooden mechanisms were soon invented and adopted to help hold the woodblock perfectly still and apply proper pressure in the printing process. This was especially helpful with the introduction of multiple colors that had to be applied with precision over previous ink layers.

Of course, my version of Moku Hanga is all done using digital computer software…and like the Japanese schools, I can create several different styles. I am having fun experimenting with this new software. This image is of large metal flowers so prominent outside Tubac craft stores and is one of my very first attempts at creating Moku Hanga drawings. You will see more in the near future. All comments on my work, good or critical, are gratefully appreciated.

(To see a larger version of this photo, just click on the image)

To see more of my work, both in photography and digital painting, please visit my website, www.corkrum.com…or visit my Flickr Page.