DOI Heft:
No. 66 (September, 1898)
DOI Artikel:Hill-Burton, M. R.: Photography and colour-painting in Japan
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.21969#0285
Photography and Colour-Printing in Japan
with, a dozen or so of Japanese who were squatting
on the floor. The men were evidently of a humble
class, and were attired only in jacket and loin
cloth. As usual in Japan, everything was on the
floor, brushes, blocks, paint-saucers, and the in-
evitable teapot and smoking-box.
The man nearest to me had in front of him a
board about a foot long with a large blotch of
bright green paint on it. On the top of a little
cabinet, within reach of his hand, lay a sheaf of
brightly printed sheets of paper. With an unceas-
ing motion, as quickly and with apparently as little
thought as a deft waiter ladles out soup, he dipped
a small paint brush in the saucer of colour before
him, touched the block with it, dipped the brush
in water, touched the block again, picked up one of
the printed sheets and laid it on the block, drew a
small round pad over it, laid it aside, rubbed his
block with a wet rag, and recommenced. There was
no cessation in the movement of his hands, appa-
rently not a moment given to consideration, yet two
at least of the operations were of extreme delicacy.
His work was to tone some maple leaves repre-
sented fluttering in the air. On the block each
maple leaf was about the size of one lobe of a for-
get-me-not. They had already received at least one
all-over printing with colour, hence the large stain
of green on the block, but in the original water-
colour painting the colour ran from brown to
green, and was of course slightly broken. The
printer was rendering this browned and broken
effect by taking up a full brush of brown and
running some water into it. About the form
he had not to concern himself, as the wood-cutter
had already given that. The result was amazingly
like the original—i.e., a free touch with a water-
colour brush.
The really critical part of his handiwork was the
actual printing, the laying of the sheet of paper on
the block so that his leaves should fit exactly into
their appointed place. A slip at this point would
not only have wasted his own work, but destroyed
the print which might already have received sixty
or eighty printings.
WISTARIA TRAINED UPON TRELLIS WORK
248
FROM A JAPANESE PHOTOGRAPH
with, a dozen or so of Japanese who were squatting
on the floor. The men were evidently of a humble
class, and were attired only in jacket and loin
cloth. As usual in Japan, everything was on the
floor, brushes, blocks, paint-saucers, and the in-
evitable teapot and smoking-box.
The man nearest to me had in front of him a
board about a foot long with a large blotch of
bright green paint on it. On the top of a little
cabinet, within reach of his hand, lay a sheaf of
brightly printed sheets of paper. With an unceas-
ing motion, as quickly and with apparently as little
thought as a deft waiter ladles out soup, he dipped
a small paint brush in the saucer of colour before
him, touched the block with it, dipped the brush
in water, touched the block again, picked up one of
the printed sheets and laid it on the block, drew a
small round pad over it, laid it aside, rubbed his
block with a wet rag, and recommenced. There was
no cessation in the movement of his hands, appa-
rently not a moment given to consideration, yet two
at least of the operations were of extreme delicacy.
His work was to tone some maple leaves repre-
sented fluttering in the air. On the block each
maple leaf was about the size of one lobe of a for-
get-me-not. They had already received at least one
all-over printing with colour, hence the large stain
of green on the block, but in the original water-
colour painting the colour ran from brown to
green, and was of course slightly broken. The
printer was rendering this browned and broken
effect by taking up a full brush of brown and
running some water into it. About the form
he had not to concern himself, as the wood-cutter
had already given that. The result was amazingly
like the original—i.e., a free touch with a water-
colour brush.
The really critical part of his handiwork was the
actual printing, the laying of the sheet of paper on
the block so that his leaves should fit exactly into
their appointed place. A slip at this point would
not only have wasted his own work, but destroyed
the print which might already have received sixty
or eighty printings.
WISTARIA TRAINED UPON TRELLIS WORK
248
FROM A JAPANESE PHOTOGRAPH