Izumi Shikibu

Here we are with our eighth print of the year, as usual a woman poet. This time it is the very famous Izumi Shikibu, who lived almost exactly one thousand years ago. Unlike last month's poet, about whom I was able to learn very little, my reference books are full of information this time. The 'label' by which we now know her (I hesitate to call it a 'name') comes from the fact that she was married to the Governor of Izumi province, and was responsible for overseeing a number of the ceremonies ('shiki') held at court. We will meet her daughter later on in the Hyaku-nin Isshu. One item in her biography that caught my notice was the presence of a quite lengthy listing of both husbands and lovers. I don't know how typical this kind of behaviour was for the period, but I can well imagine the trail of emotional turmoil that she must have left behind her everywhere she went ...

Her poem must have been written near the end of her life. It has been the subject of many varied interpretations, so I'll quote a literal translation:

Now and then, I get visitors to my workshop, either people who know me and simply drop by to say 'hello', or people whom I have never met, but who would like to see the prints. I don't mind this, as it is usually an excuse to take a bit of a break from the work, and I am not so pressed for time that I can't stop and chat for a bit. I pull out a cushion for everybody, and we sit on the tatami beside my workbench while we talk. Sometimes they are only here for a few minutes and sometimes for a couple of hours, but nearly always, when it comes time for them to leave, the same thing happens. I stand up ... zzzzoooo, and they stand up ... zz...zz...oo...oo... It seems to depend on their age. Guests about my age or older don't have much problem standing up after sitting on the tatami for a while, but younger ones ...!

For about the first ten years or so that I was learning printmaking, I did all my work standing at a tall workbench. I knew that traditional Japanese carvers and printers always worked sitting down at low benches, but I was sure that I would never be able to do that. About three years ago though, during the second year on this Hyaku-nin Isshu project, I decided to switch over to sitting down for the work. It was tough on my legs at first, but I found that the actual printing work was very much facilitated by the new posture. Instead of standing over the block and 'pushing' down into it, I now felt the strength coming from the belly area, up in a curve through the shoulders, down the arm, and into the baren. I was silly to think that I could have done it any other way ... And now, six ... eight ... ten hours cross-legged ... no problem!

Some of the older printmakers that I visit now look as though they are riding a horse when they stand up, as their legs have become quite bent over the years. I am trying to avoid this by making sure I get plenty of exercise on my bicycle and in the swimming pool. (Unlike them, I also didn't start this when I was in my teens, so I should be OK, I hope!)

So if you come to visit, please just 'gaman suru', and try and relax as well as you can. (... and I won't mind if you stretch your legs out!) Until next month ...

October 1993

Translation - Tom Galt, 1982