
"WHAT IS BLOCK PRINTING?"
Block printing is an ancient art form that can be dated back to the
2nd century. It has been found across the globe in countries from China to
Africa, Egypt to India. In the beginning, itıs primary function was to
create impressions in clay or wax for use as official seals. It was
with the advent of paper production, during the 17th century in mainland China,
that block printing, as the art form that we know it, began.
Blocks were
originally made of clay and stone. Later, they were made of other
materialssuch as wood, metal, linoleum and even potatoes. Throughout history,
block printing has been used for decoration, official documentation, and
personal aesthetic expression. It's use has waxed and waned over time, but never
failed to be a classic technique that artists such as Utamaro,
Horunobu,Gauguin, Van Gogh, Lautrec, Whistler, Matisse, and Picasso have used.
Block printing is a way of producing many from one. Each print is as unique
as the original.
"Without love in the dream, it will never come true"~Robert Hunter,
lyricist for the Grateful Dead