Katsutoshi Yuasa is one of the most ambitious artists working in mokuhanga today. His work has been appreciated and admired all over the world while testing the medium with variant print sizes, colour combinations, mixed media and photography. Katsu pushes the boundaries of what mokuhanga can be. I speak with Katsutoshi Yuasa about his process, what its like to be a working artist and what mokuhanga means to him. 

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Notes: may contain a hyperlink. Simply click on the highlighted word or phrase.

Katsutoshi Yuasa - website, Instagram

Musashino Art University - is a University based in Tokyo, Japan focusing on giving students the best education in the arts and design. website 

Royal College of Art and Design - is a postgraduate art university located in London, England. More information, here. 

Ayomi Yoshida - is a visual artist who works in mokuhanga, and installations and commercial design. She is the granddaughter of the printmaker and print designer, Hiroshi Yoshida. She teaches printmaking and art. More info can be found, here. 

Wolfgang Tilmanns - is a German photographer, author, lecturer and maker of installations.  More info, here. 

Thomas Wolf - a German photographer who's work focuses on the every day items of the world. more info, here. 

MI Lab - Mokuhanga Innovation Laboratory is located in Tōkyō. It is a place set up for learning mokuhanga. The artist-in-residence program, having been held since 2011 on Lake Kawaguchi near Mt. Fuji, is an application based program hosting international mokuhanga practitioners who are looking to move their work forward. More information can be found, here.

Rives BFK paper - an acid free paper used for printmaking of all types. more info, here. 

photographic paper - is a light sensitive paper used for making photographic prints. 

washi - is a handmade Japanese style paper used for woodblock printmaking. 

shina - is a soft type of Japanese plywood used predominantly for Japanese woodblock. 

P.E.T bottle - are bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate, used around the world. 

Japanese garbage system - is a sorting system used in Japan. It requires the citizen of Japan to sort their trash through various means, and these types of garbage such as "combustible," "non-combustible," and "recycling." Each Prefecture has their own rules and regulations as to trash and recycling. More info, here. 

Adobe Photoshop  - a graphic editor used by artists worldwide. 

A4 paper size - is a size of paper from the ISO 216 standard, with the dimensions of 210x297 mm. 

acetone - a chemical which acts as a solvent. Used for many situations, also in art. 

orange oil - is an essential oil used in the wellness community as well as in the arts.

Hotel Metropolitan Kawasaki - is a hotel where Katsu's work "Geometric Landscape #1," is being shown from January 8th - February 28th, 2022. more info, here , and here. 

gilding - is a method in art where the artist used leafed metals such as gold and silver. Used in Japanese art [screen making (byōbu)]. more info, here.  

urushi  - is a type of lacquer used  in Japanese lacquerware for hundreds of years especially in maki-e lacquer decoration. A very good blog posting by Woodspirit Handcraft has great information about urushi, here.

Holbein - is a paste pigment made in Japan used by printmakers and artists. more info, here.  

CMYK colour model - stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Key which are the colours used in the printing process of whichever work you are making. More info, here. 

Tama Art University - is an art university located in the Setagaya area of Tokyo. It focuses on the "freedom" of the individual. more info, here. 

Collaboration System - the collaboration system Katsu speaks on, regarding ukiyo-e, was a system which involved the artist, carver, printer, and publisher working in collaboration to make a series of prints. All prints made until the early 20th Century where made through this system. 

opening and closing credit music - The Cramps - "Rockin' Bones," 1981. From the album Psychedelic Jungle

 

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***The opinions expressed in The Unfinished Print podcast are not necessarily those of Andre Zadorozny and of Popular Wheat Productions.***