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Using the Japanese moku hanga technique, Leon Loughridge creates rich woodblock prints of the American Southwest. Read his personal account of how and why he uses these techniques to create his woodblock prints, featured in the April/May 2023 Edition of the International Artist Magazine.
Japanese woodblocks, particularly the work of Hasui Kawase and Hiroshi Yoshida—both considered masters of the Shin-hanga movement— have inspired and influenced my work. There was a great tradition of creativity and innovation in Japanese printmaking during the 18th and 19th centuries. I see the gift of knowledge from former masters not as a dictum of the process, but rather as a springboard for my own creativity.
Moku (wood) hanga (print) is a Japanese printmaking technique distinguished by its simplicity of material: wood, carving tool, water, paper, pigment, rice paste and baren. The mechanics of the process are simple, yet labor intensive, as every step is completely manual. I am physically involved with the control of each step during printing: I can apply ink to a specific area or the entire block; I can blend colors to create a gradation or modulate the subtlety of tone; I can adjust the pressure and texture of the baren to create different effects; I can print using multiple blocks to add detail and depth to a smaller area.
The more I learned about the moku hanga process, the more I moved away from traditional Western style relief printing. What intrigues me most about the hand-printing process is that it is all about touch. As an artist, I learn everything about the language I work in, taking the vocabulary and making it my own. I look at the woodblocks as my woodblock paintings. The more comfortable one becomes with a process, the more fluid and creative one can be.
My process begins outdoors with sketches and watercolor studies that become the roadmap for the woodblock. In the studio, I create a master drawing to transfer the image onto multiple blocks, as I did with March Ascent, demonstrated in this article. I begin carving away the block for the first color run, starting with the lightest colors and values, progressively deepening in color to add depth and contrast.
I use the reduction process, where one block is carved and then printed multiple times, reducing the print area of the block with each color run. I mix my pigment, rice paste and water to achieve the desired color value and opacity. It is very important for me to mix my own colors in order to achieve the subtle color gradations in my woodblocks. I then transfer ink from the inkwell to the moistened block using a 1-inch brush, followed with a flat, rectangular surikomi (stencil) or hanga (print) brush held perpendicular to the block to distribute the ink with small, circular motions finished with gentle vertical or horizontal strokes.
