<b>THE TORII GATE AT MIYAJIMA</b> / Paul Binnie2003<b>SOLD</b></em>

Details

Paul Binnie (born 1967) is a Scottish artist who studied at Edinburgh University and College of Art from 1985 to 1990. Afterward, he lived in Paris until 1993, when he traveled to Tokyo and met the contemporary woodblock printmaker Kenji Seki, from whom he learned much about the techniques of printmaking. Binnie uses 20 or more blocks for some designs, cherry for the keyblock and magnolia for the color blocks. His pigments also are those used for Nihonga (Japanese-style painting) except for bero-ai (Berlin blue or Prussian blue). He prefers torinoko kôzo and nishinouchi washi for his papers. He typically begins printing an edition with about 30 to 40 prints and then finishes the edition on demand. Upon finishing, he destroys the blocks.

Binnie, who has an interest in Ukiyo-e and Shin Hanga, has designed Japanese prints in several genres, blending traditional methods with an individual modern-day style.  

Words from the Binnie Studio:

I am delighted that my new woodblock print, The Torii at Miyajima, or Miyajima no Torii, is nearing completion, and will be released May 1, 2003. This print is again very much in the Shin Hanga style of the landscape prints and is based on an original watercolour done in early summer 1998, when I was on a trip to Hiroshima. When I went there, I was surprised to see that the Torii stands on a very shallow beach, as it was low tide. Having seen this famous gateway in innumerable prints standing in the deep waters of the Inland Sea, it came as a shock to realize that the waters weren't particularly deep at all! This edition will again be of 100 examples, as is usual with my dai-oban woodblocks (42 x 29 cm, 16 1/2 x 11 1/2 inches), and is printed on 100% mulberry washi from Iwate Prefecture in Japan. This print uses 27 printing stages to achieve its effects of shading, including embossing in the water in the foreground, which is also over-printed with mica.

 Paul Binnie, 2003

Connoisseur's Note

This print was produced by Binnie in an edition of 100 impressions. This design features deluxe printing embellishments such as silver mica in the water, embossing, a strong wood grain pattern visible in the background, and beautifully printed bokashi throughout the design.