Woodblock printing is the oldest form of printing. Woodblock printing was developed in China in 868 and later appeared in Japan during the 8th century and in Europe in the 1400’s. Woodblock printing is a relief technique, in which you cut away at a piece of wood and then used like a stamp. Unlike printing or drawing it allows to easy duplication of a design.
Prepare the Wood
1Cut wood to desired size using the saw. The block should be smaller then the paper you are using by an inch on all sides. Save scarp piece to practice carving on.
2Look at both sides of the wood and pick the side that is smoother or has the nicer grain to be carved. If there are any small imperfections use the sandpaper to smooth them out.
3Paint the India ink on the side you are going to carve and then let the block dry.
4Transfer your design. Rub the back of the paper with the design on it with chalk. Then lay the paper chalk side down on the block. Then trace the design. Your design will be reversed on the final print so if you do any writing you need to trace and carve the letter backwards so the appear correctly in the print.
1Before carving your block you should practices carving on a scrap piece of wood.The V gouge is used to make lines. The more presser you apply the V gouge the wider and deeper the line you will make.The U gouge is used for removing large selections of the wood.
2Hold the gouge in one hand. Your palm should be around the round part of the handle with your finger under it and your thumb out over the blade.
3Keep the base of your second hand on the wood and your finger on top of the hand with the gouge. This will give you more control over the gouge.
4Lightly push the gouge into the wood at an angle. Be sure you don't have your hand in front of the gouge in case the gouge slips.
5Apply a forward force, as you reduce the angle. This should carve out a straight line.
6When you get to the end of the line pull the gouge back out and push the edge of the gouge straight into the end point so the wood breaks clean. You will find the carving with the grain is easier the carving against it.
7When carving out large selections use the V gouge to outline the selection then go back with the U gouge to carve the selection out.
8If you make a mistake, use the wood glue to glue big pieces back in or use wood putty to patch small bits.
Doing a Proof
1Once you are done carving the block you can do a proof. A proof is quick print to check your block. Make sure you workspace is clean before you start
2Mix the woodblock ink with the woodblock retarder by kneading them together on the piece of glass with a putty or palette knife. You should use about ¼ retarder to ¾ ink, but this varies from brand to brand. The amount of ink needed will vary depending on the size of your block.
3Roll the ink using the rubber roller back and forth until the roller is evenly covered.You have right amount of ink on the roller when the ink starts to make little points and a cracking noise.
4Roll the ink over your carving until you have an even coat of ink on the block.
5Lay the newspaper or computer paper over the block.
6Rub (burnish) the back of the paper with the wooden spoon in small circles. The harder you rub the more ink will transfer and the dark that part will look. This is great way to get contrast in you print.
7Carefully remove the paper from the block, once you have rubbed the whole block. If the paper stick to block, your ink is drying to fast and you should add more ink retarded.
8Set the paper aside to dry and go wash the ink off of your block
9Examine your proof. This is your chance to change anything you don’t like about your print. Check to make sure all your lines came out. If your lines didn’t come out, you will need to re-carve them. If you are unsure of your new re-carved lines do another proof.
Signing Your Prints
1Wait until prints are dry you can sign them. Prints should be signed in PENCIL.
2Your name should go under the bottom right corner.
3The title of your print should go in the middle of the bottom edge.
4Under the bottom left corner should be the edition number. This will be a fraction. The top number is the order in which the print was done. The bottom number is the total number of prints you printed in that series.
5Now that your prints are signed, you can mat and display them.
- CAUTION - This technique involves CUTTING away at wood with SHARP instruments and is not recommended for children. ALWAYS CARVE AWAY from yourself. The inks used are PERMANENTS so older clothing should be worn.
Things You'll Need
- Piece of wood – The wood should be at least 1 inch (2.5 cm) deep, and warp and dent free. Shelving pine is recommend.
- Newspaper or computer paper
- Acid free heavy paper – hosho or mulberry paper are both good for printing. Both can be purchased at an arts and craft store.
- Woodblock ink – Ink can be purchased as an oil base or a water base. The water base is easier to clean up but will dry faster so extra retarder is needed. Speedball is popular brand of woodblock ink that can be found at most art supply stores.
- Woodblock ink retarder – Retarder slows down the drying process of the ink, without retarder the ink will dry on your block before you transfer your design.
- India ink
- Paint bush
- Rubber roller
- Carving tools –You will need at least a V gouge and a U gouge, but you can get kits with many more types of gouges.
- Piece of glass
- Wooden spoon
- Putty knife or palette knife
- An image to carve
- Wood glue and wood putty