KUROSAKI: WOODCUT TOOLS AND WOODCUTTING

Living Prints ‘N VIDEO PIONEERS

Transcription Copyright 2003 Bill H. Ritchie, Jr.

The following is the sound track from “Kurosaki: Woodcut Tools and Woodcutting”—a 43 minute videotape made in 1980 as Akira Kurosaki demonstrated to students how he cares for and uses the tools of the Japanese woodblock carving tradition. He ends with a power tool that is not a traditional tool, but used by some people today.

The video begins with scenes taken as if the viewer has just stepped into the room. The introductions have already been made, and Kurosaki is already starting his demonstration. You hear students laughing at a joke he has just told. Izumi Kuroiwa, a graduate student at the University at the time this tape was made, is standing by, ready to translate and “localize” the master’s instructions. The  host, Professor Bill Ritchie, asks some questions and assists in the videotaping.

Kurosaki: Okay. It’s very important for Japanese woodcut—not only Japanese—woodcut printmaking to take care of such carving tools. Carving tools have a special, different characteristics. As you know, the most important knife is the “knife” and I have three different sizes.

And also, the gouge. There are four types. I wanted to use sort of big sizes. I also have other big-size gouges. Big sizes and also small sizes, like a point you need to carve very fine line, or a very fine part, you need such a small one.

This one is not original. I made a—such a skinny (narrow) by myself because I needed such a type of chisel. And also, one of the “V” gouge. It is not very important; some artists use the “V” gouge but I am not so used to this one at all.

So there are four types of carving tools. One, knife—cutting knife—and gouge, chisel, and “V”-gouge.

Kuroiwa: There are a couple of stores who carry better quality Japanese woodcarving tools but they are not as professional tools as these are. So depend either you order from Japan by mail order. A couple of specialized stores in the United States. One in Chicago and one in San Francisco.

Kurosaki: If you don’t have a ___, I want to polish—sharpen. Carving stone has different characters, from the very large [coarse] to very fine one. Also, there are two kinds: Water sharpening stones and oil sharpening stones. It is very popular in Japan to use water sharpening stones. Water sharpening stones are helped by keeping them in the water before you start to sharpen because there are lots of “holes” [porous] and you need to keep the water inside.

[Kurosaki asks Kuroiwa to explain a point]

Kuroiwa: So you go first from coarse stone. You can carve the stone to the shape you always want. This is artificial stone, good for rough, very coarse sharpening. If you chip part of the knife, you have to carve [grind] away until you get the edge straight again. So you use the coarse one.

Ritchie: Is that the gouge he’s sharpening now?

Kuroiwa: Chisel. But this is a specially rounded chisel.

Kurosaki: So you can see the “track” [groove in the stone]. This kind of stone is very easy in which to make a track. For chisel, such a kind of chisel—not a straight one—but a rounded chisel. And also, such a gouge exactly needs a track. For each size [gouge] each needs a track. For such a small gouge, you need a small track.

Ritchie: (Gesturing to a stone in the studio with tracks already made in it) Didn’t you make this for us a couple years ago?

Kurosaki: Oh, I didn’t! (Laughter at his surprising answer. A student is heard to say, “Didn’t he bring that?”).

I didn’t bring this one. But it’s better not to--(he asks Kuroiwa to explain what is wrong with the manner in which the mystery stone is grooved.)

Kuroiwa: He’s saying that it is better to keep the level [of the stone] and run off [the edge]. It won’t curve in this way, deeply, but it can run all the way through. This way is more economical—to make many [grooves].

Kurosaki: After you make—how to say?--you make a bevel you can feel a small “chip” or an iron chip, like this, or burr, then you can change stones to the finer one. This stone is much harder so you cannot make a track or groove.

Question: Is that an artificial stone?

Kurosaki: No, it’s natural.

Question: What’s it called?

Kuroiwa: We only call it, in Japanese ______ (sounds like berg) stone which means same size, a special grade of Japanese stone.

(Kurosaki and Kuroiwa exchange comments in Japanese. He concludes, regarding the mystery stone, he cannot use this surface, it’s very bumpy. Kuroiwa clarifies, saying it’s too hard.)

Kuroiwa: There is an ochre one we can get, a Japanese stone we can get here; it is artificial.

Question: How much pressure are you putting on?

Kurosaki: Strong. Very strong. I make a motion like, this way [he slows the sharpening motion down to a crawl so people can follow the movement].

Kuroiwa: He’s working in a figure eight.

Kurosaki: So, so. And rocking [the blade at the same time it is making the figure eight].

Ritchie: That’s what I wanted to see.

[Next Kurosaki discusses the selection of wood for the block or plate.]

Kurosaki: Probably you can buy, some good ply wood to make a plate. It should be not so hard because such a hard and heavy block would be difficult to carve, for gouging and chiseling. Fortunately, in Japan, we can find a very soft-fibred and beautiful—wood grain and fine surface.

There are several kinds of mahoganies, and you need to find a soft mahogany. I always check to buy the soft ones with “pasting between”—do you understand? You can bring the middle to the inside of the plywood. It’s easy to understand; if it is hard, the needle [knife] cannot get in.

Question: What is this wood?

Kurosaki: Probably a kind of Japanese cedar called Shina, spelled S-H-I-N-A.

Question: Excuse me, I wonder if you can tell me why is it necessary to use plywood? Wouldn’t it be possible to use one plain . . ..

Kurosaki: It’s very—how to say—simple—very cheap. Also, it’s easy to get very big size. It is terribly difficult to get big size cherry tree, cherry plank. Or another good plank, like birch or poplar. Anyway, it’s difficult to have a big size, by in plywood you can get about six feet by 3 feet.

Kuroiwa: I understand that in Japan there is a special story that carries the woods for woodcut carving. What they do is they age the wood for years and years so it won’t warp in printing. It is very expensive to do that, and also the size is limited. So he [Kurosaki] decided to a plywood that is more available to us—and to him.

Kurosaki: This is carbon paper. [To Ritchie] You know, Bill. If you want to transfer a plan [or design] to make a separated color plates, you have to transfer this line to each color block of the line—line of each color block—to transfer to each block.

By pinning, you can keep the tracing paper without it moving—fixed on to the block. [Aside in Japanese, he asks for translation]. Trace each line of each block with needle or pencil. And don’t forget corner registration mark and straight registration mark.

This plate is the first plate, [master plate, line or key block] used for the process of the print. I need this part [pointing to one section in the drawing] ____ part. It should be a gradation of yellow and blue. But each plate needs two kinds of registration.

I always start to do the first cutting by knife because I would like to get a clean edge, without any effect on the outline.

This ________ which shows the space of the gouged [area]. Without gouging out this part, this ink will touch this part. So, this space should be about one and a half-inch.

Kuroiwa: He doesn’t need to cut away all of the block, but all he needs is about one and a half inches around the image, he wants to keep in relief. So that around the portion with the little line is where he is going to cut out.

Kurosaki: And the knife has a bevel at one side, and a small bevel here (showing the shape of the knife blade) on the other side. It’s all right—bevel [the right word]--slope. So this iron can have a very sharp point. You have to use this bevel against the part of the plate. Can you understand? This side has a bevel. Right? I need to leave this one (pointing to the printing image). I can not cut this way. Can you understand?

Kuroiwa: Touch the beveled part [of the knife blade] to the image. He’s going to plan how he’s going to cut. He’s not going to cut in a right angle, but beveled—slanted . . ..

Kurosaki: But otherwise, this plate comes into _____ this way, so a very cut, like a tiny outline, ___ this way. You know? Inking here. It’s very breakable.

Kuroiwa: When you are printing, you are always pressing this part. Is it clear? Okay.

Question: You’re holding that with your fist and your forefinger.

Kurosaki: It’s a breaker, or a stopper. I don’t want to go this way (gesturing how, if he did not “brake” his cutting action, he would risk cutting toward himself.)

Kurosaki: In a more delicate technique—what I want to explain now—is you have to carve a little bit outside of the line, tracing line, because if you carve exactly this size, without an exact registration mark you can get a kind of small white line. But out-sizing the plate will make some over-printing part. After you make a test proof, you can deduct such a part if you don’t like or you don’t want it.

Kuroiwa: The line he transferred is exact. But if he carved exact, the registration becomes more difficult. So he is carving just a little outside of the exact line so he has leeway. By printing he’ll find out just exactly where he wants to go. Then he can carve a little more if he needs. The wood will swell in printing, so you don’t have to carve very much further from the line—but just a touch-line—it makes it enough by swelling.

Kurosaki: When you cut the—make the registration mark—the registration mark should be straight, straight this way (gesturing how the cut goes straight down).

Kuroiwa: In the plate you are carving the registration mark, it has to be cut at right angles so the paper can rest exactly.

Question: (Regarding the name of the knife for making registration marks).

Kurosaki: Kento.

Kuroiwa: Kento is the name of the expression for printing registration. Kento-nomi is the name of the knife of registration.

Kurosaki: It’s very easy as I already made two registration marks. So it’s easier to keep, to hold, keep the paper . . ..

Kuroiwa: (To the group) You can come close to see anytime . . ..

Kurosaki: You saw in the morning (referring to the morning demonstration, available on tape) you have to learn holding the paper like a crab. Your thumb should be movable, right? It can keep the paper at the corner, pressed like this, but not moving, like this.

Kurosaki: This one layer (of wood in a veneer plywood) on the surface is a good thickness for keeping the paper.

Kuroiwa: One veneer of the top sheet is enough thickness . . ..

Kurosaki: So you don’t need to carve very deeply. Sometimes a student carves a registration mark very deeply. So it makes it a little difference distance from, um—you can understand.

Kuroiwa: If you carve it too deep then it will take up more paper into that kento mark and it makes it more difficult to get exact registration, so it’s better to carve it thin.

(Kurosaki is nailing the block to the table)

Question: (unintelligible, regarding the distance of the mark from the corner mark. Kuroiwa asks Kurosaki).

Kurosaki: Eighty percent and twenty percent.

The straight registration mark is about 80 percent of the block, away from the corner mark so that you can hold it in one hand and hold the other . . ..

Kurosaki: After you have cut the line, you have to start gouging with a big gouge.

Question: How deep do you cut that first line? Do you cut that the full thickness of the one laminate?

Kurosaki: I think only through one layer, come to second layer.

Question: You made the full cut, though, at one time. You won’t go back and re-cut over that a second time?

Kurosaki: No, we’d make a mistake, you know. Sometimes you miss—you cut inside. So it’s better not to cut twice.

Kuroiwa: The first line you need to cut with some strength to go through more than one layer of veneer.

(Later, as Kurosaki gouges out the area around the cut:) You could use a bench hook or, like this you could use a nail, to secure the plate.

Kurosaki: (As he completes the carving away of the large open area outside the printing area:) Gouging is most important.

Comment from a viewer unintelligible.

Kurosaki: Oh yes, cutting a line is most important, but even if only cutting, would not be able to print, but gouging would make the print, ah -(aside to Kuroiwa in Japanese he searches for the words in English).

Kuroiwa: To complete the plate, you know . . ..

Kurosaki: You know, it’s just like acid for a copper plate—in etching, acid is very important, right? Because it is making the plate.

Kuroiwa: So this makes a valley between the image and the remainder of the plate.

So the middle of the valley is deeper than the ones closer to the image. Just because the paper would fall, like this, they have to know exactly how deep where it should go so it won’t print.

Kurosaki: The beginner of woodcut printmaking, one is making a mistake of this gouging, you know. Some students gouge very thin [shallow] and not deep. But some students carve so deeply and too deep is not so good.

(He comments to Kuroiwa in Japanese. An observer asks what he said.)

Kuroiwa: He said if you carve it too deep, the paper will fall under it.

Kurosaki: And also, a more important mistake, if you carve too deeply, the brush will touch this outline very strongly. Can you understand?

Kuroiwa: If you carve this portion too deeply and you have too sudden a gap, then when you are brushing the ink, it will collect at the corner which doesn’t give you a clean edge so it has to the right carving depth.

(Kurosaki adds to this in Japanese and Kuroiwa translates.)

And also, the hundreds of times of brushing will “eat” [wear away] the plate faster if you have too much depth.

(Kurosaki adds to this, again in Japanese, and Kuroiwa goes on.)

To keep the life of the brush longer and to have better, to have cleaner, the printing, the _____ would be preferable.

Kurosaki: Okay, after some gouging, use the flat chisel, small chisel, and pick up the outline.

Kuroiwa; The big gouge dig around the original, that line he first cut, and now he’s going back with a very small gouge—cutting away very close to the line he cut first.

Kurosaki: It is very easy for the veneer layer, you know, to pick up one layer with the chisel. But when you use a plank [wood board, not plywood], it’s not easy to pick up. So, such a time, you have to carve this way (gesturing) to make a _____ valley.

(He explains what he means in Japanese to Kuroiwa.)

Kuroiwa: With a veneer, you could peel that first veneer by just using a small gouge—knife—but if you are using plank [wood] you have to make the first very tiny V-shape portion after you cut he first line so that it won’t hurt by carving.

Kurosaki: Okay, so after this outline, you need to use a small gouge and--(in Japanese he comments to Kuroiwa.)

Kuroiwa: The one veneer thickness is not enough so he is carving a little more of that last portion close to that image.

(Here there is a long silence as he cuts closer and closer to the printing portion of the wood block. He comments to Kuroiwa again in Japanese what he is doing.)

Kuroiwa: At this time, sometimes by mistake you carve too much and you lose that nice slope there so watch out.

Kurosaki: Okay, next use the big chisel and make a beautiful slope, a beautiful valley. (Again there is a long silence as he carves.)

Kuroiwa: He is cleaning up the valley and this would be the last stage of carving.

Kurosaki: Don’t use tools against the direction of the wood fiber, or wood grain. If you use them against the grain—okay, I will do it right now, this way—you cannot clean, you see?

Kuroiwa: If you carve against the grain, the knife goes deeper and deeper, going under the grain, so go along with the grain. He will be able to see which way the grain is running.

He said he carves in a day about six blocks, but the largest blocks he makes are about sixteen times the size of this one. So he can carve about six blocks of that size. About eight hours of labor.

(Kurosaki comments to Kuroiwa in Japanese.)

Kurosaki: Okay, almost done.

Question: Would you use a larger knife to do your outline on something that has less curves or something, is that when you would use the knife with the largest blade?

Kurosaki: This one is very fine and cannot carve hard wood. It has a very weak point. But this one is thick, and strong. So when you have a hard plate, you can use this one. Even if it is such big, it is much fine [sic] tools—more than Chinese tools—Chinese tools are much bigger and it can make a very ____ cut.

It makes like this, you know, come down with slope, come out with slope. With us, comes down very straight—and straight. (Gesturing) Because the baren [the hand-printing tool used in making the prints after inking, later on] is much bigger than this plate, you see, so the baren is partially printing this side [of the valley] too. So if you make a hard edge on the outside, the baren will press the paper against the hard edge. You get a funny line.

That’s why you have to make a gentle slope here. And also this gentle valley will help the brushing. If it is just straight, the brush is touching very strongly and will damage the brush very quickly and will;; damage the plate very quickly, too.

Kuroiwa: Please come closer and examine the plate.

Kurosaki: Sometimes you probably will get tired to make a plate with a gouge. Sometimes you need to do a big-gouging [large areas of carving]. But it is easy to carve out, but I have this [electric] router, too, but I do not use a router so much, do not like it so much. Because this one looks very bad, you know; I do not want to make a bad-looking plate. And also, you need a plan to hold the plate, preparing to hold the plate on a desk, or, also preparing a ______--it takes a long time. I can finish carving by hand!

So I have a router big spaces, but not for smaller [ones]. Does everyone know about this machine?

Ritchie: (Facetiously) No, no one knows about it. (Laughter).

Kurosaki: It’s very easy to work. It’s okay. It’s not [set to cut] too deep. I don’t know, this is a little bit . . .. (Ritchie’s asks if he wants to check the design first. Kurosaki gives the machine a trial.)

So when you transfer the image, you can carve off the outside, but don’t touch the line! Anyway, I will demonstrate. It’s easy to draw the triangle image.

Ritchie: Is that for Triangle Studios? (Referring to a cooperative he belongs to, tongue-in-cheek.)

Kurosaki: Yes. It’s a dedication for you. (Good naturedly). But, you need to leave this triangle, so you need to carve away this space. But don’t cross—with the router—up to this line. You have to leave this line. Later, you—cut later.

(Kurosaki finishes the line design which shows where he will cut with the router, then he proceeds with the machine, a very noisy process, and chips fly. He wears eye protection.)

So, it’s easy to take off, right? I think it’s cut a little too deep [after all]. How do you adjust . . ..

Ritchie: There’s an adjustment. Loosen one and then you can adjust to a shallower cut. Do you want to change . . .?

Kurosaki: Even if you use a router, you cannot cut the form of the plate because it is terribly dangerous to cut up to this point [on the triangle design he drew]. So you can carve only the outside; and later, you have to carve by hand this slope part of the plate. So it takes me a long time. So, it’s much better to do it by myself.

Ritchie: Thank you!

Kurosaki: Kuroiwa-san, it’s a little more for deeper--you have to adjust for more shallow [cut] after carving the . . . this way, and then make a stroke. (Unintelligible).

Please try to use the machine.

Ritchie: Who are you talking to?

Student: I think the man in the blue shirt (jokingly, referring to professor Ritchie himself).

(To be continued as transcription is in progress. Please contact Bill at Ritchie@seanet.com for information)

Bill Ritchie’s mailing address is 500 Aloha #105, Seattle, WA 98109. Telephone number is 206-285-0658. This audio tape and transcription is copyright 2003 By Bill Ritchie and may not be replicated without permission.