Edward Fairbrother Strange

“ For the sake of economy, colour-blocks are sometimes cut on both sides; and, for small details, two portions of the design may be cut on one side, but only one colour is printed at each operation.
In the actual cutting of the block, the old Japanese engraver adhered to an important principle—that of following the direction of the brush strokes of the original drawing, in such a manner as to reproduce the actual quality of the brush-mark. This is less apparent in the ordinary colour-prints ”

“ A block that had warped could often be straightened out again, by being well soaked in water and then placed under a weight.
DIAGRAM:——Method of framing a block to prevent warping.
PRINTING [pg 12] The Printing of the old colour-prints was done by a third person, neither the engraver nor the designer.
The finished block must first be thoroughly washed and dried. The colour is then applied with a brush, to the upper surface of the block, which rests on a low stand (Suridai) to which are affixed four small cushions of wet cotton (Yawara) to prevent slipping (fig. 6) . ”

“ The completed design (generally, to begin with, in black lines only, or with only a little tint as a guide to the engraver) was then fastened face downwards on the block with rice starch weakened with water. As much as possible of its upper surface was rubbed away, some oil being used to make the remainder more translucent, and thus to enable the engraver more easily to follow the lines of the drawing. ”