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David Bull - Woodblock Printmaker

The 2011 Gift Print

"I can't believe I didn't think of sending them a print until just today - it's the perfect gift since it's so well suited to being mailed. (I always have a difficult time figuring out what I can get them that will be genuinely appreciated but that won't cost me an arm and a leg to send!)"

Each year as we approach the gift season, I select one of the designs from my many series, get the blocks out of the storeroom, and print up a batch specifically for this purpose. The gift print for this year is one that I made some years back as a 'New Year' print, a design from a relatively unknown Meiji era artist - Kobayashi Eitaku.

Kobayashi Eitaku woodblock print
(The images on this page can be clicked to show a larger version)

To make the print - which is standard Japanese 'postcard' size (15 x 11cm) - I carved the image onto blocks of boxwood (for the outline), and mountain cherry (for the colours), and then used fine quality hand-made Japanese paper to pull the impressions.

 

Two of the seven blocks used to make the print ...

A special feature of this kind of print is the way that the printed lines get embossed into the paper. To see this in the way that the viewers of the old days did, one must turn off any overhead lighting and hold the print near a window or lamp. The light falling horizontally across the print will then highlight the embossments and allow the full texture of the beautiful Japanese paper to be enjoyed.

Kobayashi Eitaku print - enlargement

About the Gift Prints ... (including video ...)

 

I have prepared a little folder ...

Folder with Japanese print

... with the print mounted carefully on a backboard, and accompanied by a short descriptive pamphlet giving some background.

The Japanese print inside its folder

The print package is slipped into an envelope ... which is wrapped in a traditional wrapping paper (pattern will vary)

Japanese traditional wrapping paper

It is mailed from Tokyo in a padded envelope with current Japanese commemorative stamps. (stamps will vary from package to package ...)

Japanese stamps

I make the prints completely by hand ... using the same tools and techniques used in the Edo days ...

Cutting the blocks ...

"Hi Dave - I thought you would like to see my daughter's (she has a Masters in Fine Art) comments to me after receiving her woodcut. To say the least she was excited..."

"DAD! Thank you so much for my print from Japan! You would not believe how immaculately packaged it was. I was blown away! The envelope and stamps and fonts were gorgeous. I opened that up, and the little package was origami-wrapped in BEAUTIFUL paper, then another little envelope, THEN a little booklet with the woodcut inside. OH MY GOSH! Where did you find this?! ... Thank you so so much! That was probably the most exciting thing I've ever gotten in the mail."

Sample gift print package
(after clicking, give it a moment to start streaming ...)
 

Price ...

The gift prints are US$30 - including packing as illustrated above, and air mail postage to anywhere on the planet.

I can mail to you, or directly to somebody on your behalf as a 'Gift from Japan'. The usual way is to include a slip of paper along the lines of: "For Ms. Happy Recipient, here is a small gift from Japan - sent to you at the request of Mr. Gift Sender", but of course I can use any message you wish to include. (At your choice, I can ship immediately upon receipt of the order, or can hold the package back and post it later for arrival in (say) mid-December.)

I have also printed up more copies of the images I used in the previous few years, a design of a flying crane, a pair of birds by Isoda Koryusai, and the very popular carp design by Katsushika Hokusai, and you can choose from these as well. Just select the appropriate quantities on the order form below.

Harunobu woodblock print
Koryusai woodblock printKatsushika Hokusai woodblock print

Gift Print Selection Form

Use the quantity selectors to choose the print(s) you would like. (These can be changed later in the shopping cart.) Each print is $30, packing and postage included.

Girl playing Temari

Hokusai Carp

Heron and Crow

Crane at Sunrise

After making your selection of prints please move ahead to the next step, where you can select a payment method (Paypal, credit card, cheque, money order, etc.) and then confirm the order (if you wish). Shipping information for yourself and/or your gift recipients will also be filled in at that time.

If you like this idea of a woodblock print as a gift, but are looking for something a bit more substantial, please have a look at these ideas:

   

And if none of the ideas on this page are suitable for your gift, perhaps you would be satisfied with sending your recipient friend a woodblock.com eCard ...

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