[Baren]: The mailing list / discussion forum for woodblock printmaking. Baren Digest Saturday, 25 July 1998 Volume 04 : Number 224 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Gayle Wohlken Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 09:15:24 -0400 Subject: [Baren 1235] Re: Baren Digest V4 #223-brayers Baren, Regarding Speedball brayers James Mundie wrote: > They do an adequate job and they are > inexpensive enough to toss when they start to be lesss than they could be > (usually two+ years). James, I have been using my Speedball brayers for years (much more than two) and they seem to still work. What happens to them that you recommend discarding them after a couple years. Am I missing something important about brayers? I use Speedball because they work fine for me and I can buy one just about anywhere. However, I just ordered a catalog from the people in England (the Lawrence people that Andrea mentions). I might try what they have, but I notice the brayer you all are talking about is pricey (the Durathane that doesn't melt). Gayle Wohlken ------------------------------ From: StudioJNC@aol.com Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 10:52:03 EDT Subject: [Baren 1236] Blotters and Mildew Baren Group I notice that when I put my dampened paper between blotters, the water seems to sit on top in beads. It is hard to get it just right for printing. I am using my favorite Rives for this and smooth blotters. I have never tried to use the rough blotters. Could this be the problem? I went to my storage area to retrieve some old passe' woodcuts, vintage 20 years ago. Some were not too bad and thought I could use them again but lo and behold they had the measles, mildew. Someone suggested putting them in the sunshine. Since I have many birds in my yard., I am afraid they would add a little too much texture to the prints. Also read somewhere that if you put dry clorox in with the paper art and sealed them up in a plastic bag, this would work. Some of the prints are pretty good and I hate to destroy them, but if I must, I will. Speedball barens work for me , I got out my OLD speedball barens and they are in good condition, and when they were used (20 years ago), they were in use for about 5 years. My Web Page is near completion. I am saving the time when I have some woodcuts to add to it, as now it mostly of my oil paintings. The Baren has inspired me to return to woodcuts. Yes, it is HOT all over, but just think; the animals do not have air conditioned rooms to go to !!!! Happy Printing Jeanne ------------------------------ From: Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 08:45:32 -0700 Subject: [Baren 1237] about rollers About the rollers, The speedball rollers have two drawbacks for me. The first is size. They are very small and so take a very long time to ink a block. Because you have to keep recharging it over and over and then you have to make many passes over the block to get the ink even you often end up with to much ink on the block. The size also make doing a fade nearly impossible. The second drawback is the hardness of the surface. If you have a surface with just a little more give you can add a lot of texture to your blocks using very shallow cuts. I save my speedball rollers for inking small areas with solid colors and for young students (because they are indestructable) Andrea ------------------------------ From: jimandkatemundie@juno.com (James G Mundie) Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 10:05:13 -0400 Subject: [Baren 1238] cleaning brayers I've never used kerosene to clean brayers. As a student, we had a number of solvents available-- xylene, lithotine, etc., most of which were exceedingly nasty. In an effort to be less toxic, they tried to switch everyone to vegatable oil, but that was no good for brayers as it left a horrid rancid residue on them no matter how well you cleaned them which would get into the ink next time you tried to use them. What I tend to have on hand is "Turpenoid", the 'odorless' paint thinner I keep around for oil paintnig. I clean off as much ink as I possibly can with the thinner, then wash the brayer with a concentrated liquid organic laundry detergent. Works like a charm. However, you have to be careful when cleaning or you may cause uneven wear on the roller, which then won't 'touch down' evenly on the board. *** Hideshi, You wrote in your answer to Graham that you print the Liquitex block first, and then ink on top of that. By "ink" do you mean oil-based pigment? If so, I would think you are wise to print in the order that you do, because-- when reversed-- the oil-based ink would repel the water-based Liquitex. [Liquitex is a great product, by the way. They make the best gesso I've ever come across.] Mise le meas, James Mundie, Philadelphia USA ------------------------------ From: David Bull Date: Sat, 25 Jul 1998 10:13:10 +0900 Subject: [Baren 1239] Woodblock dreams ... A couple of weeks ago, I send an overly long posting to [Baren] describing a 'fantasy' about an old woodblock. A couple of you wrote back to me - 'Was it a dream? Was it real?' The rest of the story, and a small gallery of photographs, have just now gone up to the Encyclopedia. But I must warn you, before browsing - tie your shoelaces extra tightly; some of these photos are going to blow your socks off. http://www.woodblock.com/encyclopedia/updates.html Thanks for reading ... Dave ------------------------------ From: David Bull Date: Sat, 25 Jul 1998 14:13:06 +0900 Subject: [Baren 1240] One-point lesson ... Boy - one week goes by quickly these days. Here it is, already time for the next 'One-point lesson' ... ********** ********** ********** (#15) The 'sandpaper' baren ... Experienced printmakers working in the Japanese method acquire quite a large collection of barens during their working life. It's not that they are simply acquisitive, but that a professional printer _needs_ a wide variety of barens on hand to be able to select one suitable for whatever job he is doing at the moment. A list of available barens from a supplier usually includes 8-strand, 12-strand, 16-strand, etc., but there are some barens in common use that are never included on such price lists - each printer makes his own. One such common type is the 'sandpaper' baren. Some printing jobs require a very 'weak' baren. Perhaps the carved area is extremely small, as when printing the lip colour on a portrait, or perhaps the colour impression desired is one with no 'body' in the tone. In both these cases a normal baren, even a delicate 4-strand type, can sometimes be too strong; the 'bumps' of the coil bash into the carved area, or perhaps leave lines in the colour. For such jobs, a baren with _no_ coil inside works very well. Cut a disc from thin plywood or stiff cardboard; about 15cm is a good size - somewhat wider than a typical baren. Sand the edges smooth. Cut a matching disc from a sheet of rough sandpaper, say a 60 grit, and tack it to the plywood with a light glue. Cover this combination with a bamboo sheath just as though it were a normal baren - with the sandpaper taking the place of the bamboo coil. This baren can be used in many ways; lightly and delicately, as when printing those lips, or with full pressure on areas of wide colour, producing an interesting mottled effect. That's it. For an investment of only a couple of dollars, you've got a new 'professional' tool in your arsenal! Who says barens are expensive! ********** ********** ********** Next week, 'Ditch-digging ...' These 'One-point' lessons are being collected into a section in the [Baren] Encyclopedia of Woodblock Printmaking. http://www.woodblock.com/encyclopedia/updates.html Contributions from experienced printmakers for future 'One-pointers' are eagerly solicited. ------------------------------ From: Jack Reisland Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 23:27:24 -0700 Subject: [Baren 1241] Re: Woodblock dreams ... I just finished (for a while, at least) looking at the new photos of the Dream Woodblock and wanted to share my thoughts with David. In my 20 years of Conservation work I have had the privilege of handling and closely examining many very wonderful objects from all over the world, many of them of carved wood, but when I saw the images of this woodblock, I was stunned. Although I have tried to acquire an understanding of all kinds of techniques, I can't really even begin to understand these photos. In my experience, wood does not work that way, it can't be done. I will be taking much more time staring at these images, maybe go get a bigger monitor. I want to thank you, David, for sharing this wonderful and important object with the rest of the world. You have truly shown the high potential of the internet. Thanks Again, Jack Reisland Reisland Conservation and Restoration Gig Harbor, Washington ------------------------------ End of Baren Digest V4 #224 ***************************