Abbot Henjo

This month's poet, the Abbot Henjo, is also known by the name Yoshimine no Munesada, and it is that name that we should really be using for him, as he wrote this poem before he took religious orders and changed his name. He is one of the more famous poets of old, being also one of the '36 Poets' as well as the '6 Poets'. Many of his poems are included in such collections as the 'Kokinshu'. His son, the Monk Sosei, is also a member of the Hyaku-nin Isshu.

I am writing this little memo while taking a short break during the printing of this month's print. My two jobs - carving and printing - have quite different 'moods'. Carving proceeds slowly and steadily, and due to the nature of the process, I am able to interrupt the work when necessary. If for example, I have to write a story for my newsletter, I put the partly carved block aside while I do the other work, and then simply pick up where I left off when I return. The block will wait for me quite happily.

Printing on the other hand, allows for no such easy-going approach. The work is done with wet paper, and as the amount of moisture contained in the paper is absolutely critical, it simply isn't possible to take any kind of extended break. Once the process has started, work must proceed without interruption right up until the final colour impression is completed. When the paper is thick and the desired colour is a deep tone, the work is very hard and a great deal of stamina is required. I sometimes feel glad that I'm not a full-time printer - I need the weeks of quiet carving work to recover from the exhausting days of printing!

As I said, at the moment I am still in the middle of this month's printing work, and there is another reason why I shouldn't be spending too much time here at the word processor away from my printing bench - we have entered the rainy season, and at this time of year it is especially important that the printing be finished as quickly as possible. The problem is the tendency of the 'washi' to become moldy. Keeping paper which has been sized with gelatin moist for days on end during this hot muggy season is an absolute invitation to the molds to come and take up residence. If the number of colours in the print is large, trouble is almost inevitable. It is for this reason that I arranged my series so that the prints of women (which generally contain more colours than the men) are produced in the spring and autumn, and prints with few colours (like this one) are scheduled for the summer.

Some years ago, when I asked other printers for advice on how to handle this problem, I was advised to add Formalin to the water in my bucket; this would help keep the paper free from mold. I followed their advice without giving it too much thought, but after reading a story in my newspaper recently that mentioned that Formalin was considered to be a 'virulent carcinogen', I decided to quit using it. So this summer I am under more pressure than usual to get the prints finished before the mold attacks.

I keep the moistened printing paper wrapped up and stored in the refrigerator each night, and perhaps this will do the trick. But as I found out when cleaning out the back of the fridge to make room for the stack of paper, mold will grow even in there!

Perhaps when this Hyaku-nin Isshu series is finished, I'll be able to arrange future print-making projects to avoid this difficult season. Or maybe it'll be a good excuse to start spending summers in Karuizawa or Hokkaido ... But that's all in the future. At the moment I guess I should put away this word processor, get my next colour mixed, and get back to work. The sooner this printing is finished, the better ...

June 1997

Translation: William Porter, 1909