Customer Reviews

The Woodcut Artist's Handbook: Techniques and Tools for Relief Printmaking (Woodcut Artist's Handbook: Techniques & Tools for Relief Printmaking)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A thoroughly engaging and accessible work, beautifully illustrated with many outstanding examples of woodcuts and wood engravings. Most readers will be itching to try their hand at this craft well before they've finished the book, and George Walker provides plenty of information to help you do just that. The writing is clear and readable, with a good balance of background information, practical tips and instructions, and resources for further reading. Although Walker makes no bones about the difficulty of mastering this craft, he encourages beginners to play and experiment, and gives many pointers to help you avoid the pitfalls. Obviously, his years of teaching experience have given him some insight into what people find trickiest about making printing blocks. He not only provides encouragement, he even gives instructions for repairing any mistakes you might make!

Other sections deal with how to select and care for tools (including how to keep them good and sharp); the pros and cons of different materials for blocks (various kinds of wood, linoleum, other synthetics) and different types of ink; choosing paper; ideas for arranging your workspace; how to make prints by hand or with a press (including instructions for making your own printing press!); and health and safety issues. He also suggests some interesting ways of using your finished prints, in addition to giving tips for mounting and storing them. The illustrations Walker has selected are both interesting and useful: he gives many details about the different artists represented, and the tools, techniques, inks, and papers they use to make their prints. With examples of so many different styles and techniques, you get some idea of the wide range of possibilities to be explored.

The book is rounded out by a glossary, short bios of the artists whose work appears in the book, and a list of sources for info and materials, as well as a bibliography and an index, making it a valuable and inspiring reference for all levels of printmakers and anyone else with an interest in this art. At the same time, it is a well-organized, easy-to-follow manual that can help anyone get started making their own relief prints. Even people who don't yet know that they're interested in woodcuts or wood engravings will be won over by this beautiful and comprehensive book. Highly recommended.

Walker has taken woodcut, arguably the oldest of printing techniques, and brought it into the twenty-first century. Albrecht Durer would certainly recognize everything that goes on in a woodcut artist's shop. It's the tools, inks, papers, and especially subject matter that have changed. This book steps clearly through every step, combining very readable text, illustration, and samples of original prints.

The book starts with the block itself. That can be something as homely as a cut slab of potato for a child's effort. It can also be linoleum, a wood plank, or a piece of plywood for regular woodcut. Wood engraving, which differs mainly in the fineness of the cut marks, requires fine, hard surfaces: end-grain boxwood, maple, or cherry in traditional technique, or man-made materials that may be lest costly and more predictable. The rest of the book continues in equally exacting detail: tools and especially their sharpening, cutting with hand or power tools, papers, classic and modern inks, taking the impression with simple or complex presses, and deciding on the edition. Although specimens appear thoughout the book, the last chapter is a gallery that shows the variety of people, techniques, and subjects in contemporary woodcut. Back matter is very helpful: glossary, artists' biographies, bibliography, access to resources, and a helpful index. The resource list may age quickly, as art suppliers come and go, but everything else has lasting value.

There are a few oddities. For example, Walker uses the term "monoprint" to describe images from uniquely inked cut blocks. I can't argue that usage, even though the term is more widely understood to describe prints from inked but uncut surfaces. And, despite otherwise complete coverage of multi-block printing, he omitted the idea of the counterproof. That technique inks the key block and prints it on paper, then uses the paper to transfer wet ink to the blocks to be used for other colors. Although traditional, the technique may lack the precision needed for wood engraving, and may have been overtaken by photocopying and other modern techniques.

I recommend this to anyone who appreciates woodcut, as an observer or as an active printmaker. It's beautifully printed and bound, and, despite the antiquity of the technique, completely up to date.

//wiredweird

This is in response to the Jeffery C. Chase review in which he incorrectly states that the work of Antonio Frasconi and Leonard Baskin were not mentioned in the Woodcut Artist's Handbook. They were mentioned and their work would have been reproduced in the book as well if the publisher had been granted reproduction rights. Frasconi's work is referred to on page 20 and The Complete Prints of Leonard Baskin by Alan Fern and Judith O'Sullivan (1984) is suggested reading on page 150. We tried to include as many artists as possible but because of copyright restrictions and limited resources we could not include everyone. Thank you for your comments.

I found the previous reviews to be helpful and true. I read it cover to cover immediately and can't wait to try some of the tips and to find a couple of tools I found quite interesting.

George Walker's Handbook is an excellent, enthusiastic introduction to relief printmaking. Although he favors engraving over woodcut he presents the basics of both and then takes the reader on through chapters on materials, tools, the creation of both woodcuts and engravings, papers and ink, printing, and an interesting section on editions. The art is placed in the historical context but he does point out those who are really interested in woodcuts should look at Rebecca Salter's Japanese Woodblock Printing. (I enthusiastically concur. They make a fine pair of books on the subject.)

The book is well illustrated for a small, introductory work. Seek larger format works if you want more breadth for woodcuts. However, he is very even handed and does have a good deal on contemporary work (and writes about it, too). There is a nice glossary, a good basic bibliography (although as Walker says many of the works are out of print), a brief biography of some of the major artists, a list of resoruces and organizations (with some email addresses), and an index.

All in all, for the aspiring woodcut artist this is an excellent introduction. The illustrations alone make it worth having. If you are interested in ukiyo-e, get Salter's book, too.

Sandy

The Woodcut Artist's Handbook is a good introduction to the art of the woodcut. There is a clear progression through all the steps of carving your design, inking and printing.
This book is a good introduction for someone wanting to try this skill. It will help you choose decent tools, and dive in quickly.

This book is fantastic. Anyone with any interest in learning to carve using wood block or eraser block or linoleum must study this book. Your level of talent is almost immaterial if you have the desire to carve and a copy of this book!!

Thank you Mr. Walker.
I'd have given 4-1/2 stars if possible. This book is exactly as advertised by it's title. Very readable and concise with clear illustrations. Understanding that this book is not a pretentious compendium of the entire history of woodcuts will increase your appreciation of what is presented. I have 30-years experience in printmaking, and found this book well worth the read.

I have just begun engraving wood and found this book to be extremely helpful. It describes the differences between carving and engraving and gives ample information on tools and printing processes for a beginner.

i bought this book for 1 reason: to learn the terminology and the names of the tools used in woodcut/engraving so that i would be able to shop for said items without finding myself at the mercy of an art store clerk. to that end this book served its purpose. the rest of the information contained here is obvious to the point of being self-explanatory. if you have ever had an art course in elementary school or beyond you are probably familiar with the basic concepts behind relief printmaking and you are not likely to find anything new here. to be fair, the author states that the best way to learn these techniques is to practice and to observe the work of other artists. there are some really nice examples of the work of some remarkable wood-/linocut artists and engravers peppered throughout as well as toward the back of the book, but i cant help but to point out that the title is a little bit misleading. handbook? exactly how one would use this as some sort of ongoing reference escapes me. it is, at best, a competent - if not exhaustively thorough - introduction.