Kyoto: Kyoto Museum of Crafts and Design

We visited a smaller museum in the precinct called Kyoto Museum of Crafts and Design. It contained traditional Japanese woodblock prints, of varying colours and imagery.

Some of the works for sale at the Museum.

The prints featured geometric shapes and lines to simply detailed landscapes; relevant to my specific practice as I am drawn to highly detailed landscapes; though get too caught up in the details too early in the process. These prints gave insight as to what to expect for the woodblock printmaking in Washi no Sato; how lines and shapes can evolve into beautiful, engaging scenes.

I am particularly drawn to how these prints illustrate a narrative for themselves. This interconnects with their history, as they were originally made with the intention to share texts and make them more accessible for the common people. This knowledge benefits my creative practice as I intend to readapt my experiences into my work, which often is interpreted as visual storytelling. Looking at these works gave me some ideas on how I could potentially work with this traditional Japanese art practice, and adapt to my experiences in Japan.