"The only reason for the existence of a print is its intrinsic beauty."

November 12, 2023 9:56 PM

Artist David Bull creates wonderful things. A Canadian wood block carver and printer based in Japan writes in an introduction page: "The prints you see around me in this photograph are from my 'Hyakunin Isshu' series - a set of 100 prints depicting poets of old Japan. The delightful. 'Easter eggs in Japanese woodblock prints' (yt) Previous post on Bull details his journal. Bulls YouTube channel is worth a gander.
posted by clavdivs (14 comments total)

typo bonus: Hokkaido: Kushiro Kitty Guides

posted by clavdivs at 10:05 PM on November 12, 2023

I own around 25 of his prints, all sold at a reasonable price ($30-60 CAD each). They're beautiful examples of the craft. They're the best examples of what prints used to be: well-crafted, inexpensive and accessible art.

What's additionally awesome about Bull is his embrace of technology and changing aesthetic mores. One example is the collaboration he did with Jeb Henry on contemporary video game subjects rendered in a traditional style. Above my monitor I have two, one for Pokemon.

Another is the twitch streams he did for carving new blocks. A couple of young assistants handling the macbook, and away he goes.

At the same time he's absolutely keeping alive the traditional craft: bamboo barrens, rice paste ink, cherry wood blocks carved in the Japanese way, registered by carving a master block, printing it, and transferring it to the colour blocks. When I did my degree in printmaking, he's what I imagined I would become, though I never did.
posted by fatbird at 10:09 PM on November 12, 2023 [5 favorites]

Gorgeous work. (Bull is "metafilter's own," too)
posted by Iris Gambol at 11:35 PM on November 12, 2023 [6 favorites]

It's a funny thing but I recognized the name David Bull from the years he spent as quite an active MeFite. His posts were often really interesting and introduced me to a topic I'd have never encountered otherwise - like the Kodak Colorama, or Japanese wooden flutes. I'm a bit sorry to only now be seeing how extraordinarily cool his own work is.
posted by ZaphodB at 11:45 PM on November 12, 2023 [3 favorites]

I bought 3 of his prints as a gift for my mom and they're some of her favourite artworks.
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 2:49 AM on November 13, 2023 [1 favorite]

I took a typesetting workshop and ended up chatting with the instructor (v. v. cool guy) about printmaking and he showed me a video of one of Bull's prints when we were discussing how to mix ink across a block so that you could blend colours. It was one where he sort of washed the paint of the sky in a way that the blue just bloomed from palest tinge to a deep rich blue across one solid part of the carved block, and having just attempted an extremely simple version with much struggling, it was a bit like learning to do a cartwheel and then seeing an Olympic gymnast's routine. Extraordinary.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 5:01 AM on November 13, 2023 [3 favorites]

I find his twitch stream very calming, for having on in the background while I'm cooking and doing housework.
posted by tofu_crouton at 5:41 AM on November 13, 2023 [2 favorites]

I have one and treasure it.
posted by Miko at 5:58 AM on November 13, 2023 [1 favorite]

Mr. Bull also has a very good "intro to wood block printing" book available. I love his work and also have a couple of prints. I should get some more.
posted by snwod at 6:50 AM on November 13, 2023 [2 favorites]

After buying several of his annual gift prints for myself and others, I had the good fortune to visit David's studio/shop in Asakusa when I was in Japan 5 years ago. At the time, he was offering 90-minute print classes and I attended one.

He is a true artist, and a lovely, funny, and kind person, very patient, as might be expected given his work. His studio and his team were all delightful. I'd encourage anyone who is looking for that special gift to consider his affordable gift prints - they are beautifully wrapped and packaged. Everyone I gave them to raved about how exciting it was to get a mysterious foreign package. And if you find yourself in Tokyo, a stop at his shop is a must.
posted by madamjujujive at 7:17 AM on November 13, 2023 [8 favorites]

I discovered his work through an episode of Journeys in Japan on Japan’s public television station NHK (so soothing in stressful times—they have a streaming channel on Roku!) & just last year made my first purchase of a print as a gift to my partner. It’s so clearly the result of decades of experience and passion. I would love to visit the print shop in Japan one day!
posted by inkytea at 9:25 AM on November 13, 2023 [1 favorite]

i have a few and , to echo those above , they are artisan and so beautiful , wonderful gift idea too
posted by burr1545 at 1:04 PM on November 13, 2023 [1 favorite]

There is fear, too, that the appropriated form of a culture may supplant the original and become the only version people outside that culture know. -via
posted by fairmettle at 1:21 AM on November 18, 2023

"In the early 20th century, shin-hanga that fused the tradition of ukiyo-e with the techniques of Western paintings became popular, and the works of Hasui Kawase and Hiroshi Yoshida gained international popularity. Institutes such as the "Adachi Institute of Woodblock Prints" and "Takezasado" continue to produce ukiyo-e prints with the same materials and methods as used in the past.

With the entry into modernity, in Japan there was a renewal of woodblock printmaking, the hanga. After the death of Hiroshige in 1858, the ukiyo-e practically disappeared. Its last manifestations correspond to Goyō Hashiguchi, who already shows a clear Western influence in the realism and plastic treatment of his images."
posted by clavdivs at 2:49 PM on November 18, 2023