Written on March 30, 1992 [Permalink]

March 24

Lost Friday and Saturday for working as Himi was sick with a fever - quite a high one. There's no way I can sit there carving while she tosses and turns, occasionally bursting into nonsense babble ... She cleared up by Saturday night, and I got back to work, carving the poem.

The Japan Times story came out on Sunday, and I have mixed feelings about it. He's done quite a good job of explaining just what it is that I do, but it's spoiled (for me) by a number of silly mistakes. He describes Shunsho's original as a collection of single prints rather than a book; each print needs only two blocks; I use bromides to make the hanshita; and worst of all - I've somehow become Shimano-san's apprentice! I guess doing the interview in English was a mistake ... (It was also a mistake not suggesting that he bring along a photographer... )

Monday and Tuesday was back to work, and finished the poem. Checking in the drawer, I found there was no Hodomura paper left for making the transfers to the colour blocks, so got on the phone and asked Kobayashi-san at Yamada Shokai in Yaesu to rush some out. Actually, I guess there's no rush, as the rest of this week is going to be blown away. Thursday and Friday are Fumi's graduation and then the little trip to Oshima island with the English ladies, Saturday is the kid's piano concert, rescheduled from last Friday, and the next seven days after that are school spring holiday - this print is going to end up about four weeks late ...

A letter came from the CWAJ today inviting me to submit works for consideration for their big print show in the fall. I think they've made a bit of a mistake sending me these forms, as I don't really think my stuff (dead artist, etc.) is what they want to see. (I also don't want to have people buying one by one, etc., and even if they were willing to somehow do it by sets, I can't accept their 50% cut ...)

March 25

Wrapped up 13 prints for the people at the daycare center, as a thank you for the five years my kids have spent there. (Today was Fumi's last day).

March 30

Thursday and Friday were wiped out with the trip to Oshima with the kids, and Saturday was their piano concert and a visit to Sakazaki-san's new house. Grabbed bits of time here and there during the rest of the weekend, and got the sumi-ban finished completely by Sunday evening. Wrote the blurb to go with it, and faxed that off to Canada.

Printed the name labels for Ise [4-2] this morning, and then did the transfers to the colour blocks. It looks like about 13 or 14 impressions, and it'll take four pieces of wood. Again, I've had to glue the sheets down on the wood in 'funny' places, and it'll be awkward to print, but if I lay them down straight along the grain, well spaced from each other, I'd have to use six or seven blocks. For the little 'stripes' of colour representing under layers of kimono, I'm going to try overlapping two of them to make a third. It should save both wood and printing time ...