During the current pandemic, many countries have restrictions in place, part of which is receiving international mail. This means that unfortunately you will be unable to source materials direct from Japan at the moment.
This is a short list of places you might be able to source materials in your own country to complete the online workshop with:
| Australia | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Supplier | Shina Plywood | Carving Tools | Baren | Brushes | Pigments | Nori | Washi |
| Melbourne Etching Supplies | 4.5mm | basic - buy elswhere | black plastic | no | not suitable | Yamato Nori | Yes (most Awagami washi is unsized) |
| Notes | (luan core) | only very cheap or very expensive |
avoid the other baren listed | Mizu-bake only |
Available in general art shops |
Yamato nori - tapioca starch, not rice paste as advertised |
Awagami washi - Bamboo Select 170gsm recommended |
| Melbourne Art Supplies | Ho | Gouache | |||||
| Notes | solid wood, good for carving | not suitable | no | no | Holbein Japan and other brands available | ||
| Ema Shin | A Selected range of most things | (I don't know how much stock is available, and have never bought from here) | |||||
| Zart | 4.5mm | Yamato Nori | |||||
| (I have never bought from here, but found them while researching this article) | |||||||
| Eckersleys | 4.5mm & 6mm | Black Plastic Baren | Substittute | Gouache | Yamato Nori | ||
| Neil Wallace | Black Plasitc | Awagami... | |||||
| Japanese Tools Australia | Woodblock set |
Professional Tools *reasonable prices! |
|||||
| Roslyn Kean | a range of very good ball-bearing baren | Ball Bearing Baren | |||||
As far as I know, mokuhanga brushes are not available anywhere but as a substitute brush - a stencil brush will work such as these: https://www.eckersleys.com.au/jasart-stencil-brush-set-3
Carving Tools - a variety of very cheap tools are available, but I would recommend the power grip set from Japanese Tools Australia. They also have a limited range of professional tools at reasonable prices. Much better, both for quality and price, sets are avaialbe from Japan if you can wait. Japanese Tools Australia also have a beginners set, with everything you would need.
Paper - I've had good results for smaller projects with Zerkall 145gsm, smooth, but it seems out of stock right now....
In general, supplies are limited in Australia and shops do not understand mokuhanga technique, and often have wrong information.
I haven't bought fom these USA Suppliers, but they have a good reputation:
| USA | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Supplier | Shina Plywood | Carving Tools | Baren | Brushes | Pigments | Nori | Washi |
| McClains | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| (Best mokuhanga range outside of Japan) | |||||||
| Washi Arts | Yes (small) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Sumi | Yes | Yes |
| Hiromi Paper | (Mizubake & Surikomebake) | Yes | |||||
Likewise, I haven't bought from these UK suppliers, it was what I could find on the internet.
| United Kingdom | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Supplier | Shina Plywood | Carving Tools | Baren | Brushes | Pigments | Nori | Washi |
| Handprinted | "Asian Ply" Shina | Yes - Individual professional tools and Power Grip set Available | Good Range - Sosaku Sumi and Beta available | Yes | No | Yes | Awagami |
| Jackson's | Shina & others | Professional only |
Black Plastic (out of stock) School King - Not recommended |
Yes | Gouache | Yes | |
| Intanglio Printmaker | Shina 6mm | Individual professional tools and Power Grip set Available | Black Plastic (out of stock) | 15mm hake only | Yes | Yes | |
Jacksons has some Zerkall in stock https://www.jacksonsart.com/zerkall-printmaking-paper-smooth-53x76cm-120gsm-white-25-sheets
What is Mokuhanga?
Mokuhanga is the traditional water based printing technique, originating in China and perfected in Japan.
A print is created through design, carving blocks for each colour, then printing each colour successively until the print edition is completed.
Mokuhanga is the Japanese word for wood block print. The Japanese characters 木版画 are 木 wood, 版 block and 画 picture.
In Japan its meaning is the print itself, but in general contemporary use it means both the print and the technique. Mokuhanga is growing in popularity worldwide as learning becomes more accessible to people outside of Japan.
Mokuhanga is chemical free, non-toxic, environmentally friendly, uses relatively simple hand tools and equipment and requires little space to produce beautiful work. The natural beauty of the materials - wood, pigment and hand-made paper are all retained and enhance each other. A great choice for Artists or any creative person!
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Terry McKenna Mokuhanga
This is a short video showing teacher Terry McKenna making one of his mokuhanga...
You can find more about Terry's work on his dedicated website at www.egaku.com.au
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Kyoto Mokuhanga Tours
