By Kyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory
Kyoto Women's University
Baren Studio Kikuhide
Located in Ōiso-machi in Kanagawa prefecture, Baren Studio Kikuhide is one of the very few workshops in Japan that makes baren. Besides creating baren, craftsman Hidehiko Gotō also busies himself with undertakings such as offering workshops to teach people about the fascinating tool.
What is baren?
The baren is a tool used in woodblock printing. Woodblock printing is done by placing a sheet of paper on a pre-inked woodblock and then using a baren to rub the paper and transfer the carved imaged onto the paper. In other words, this type of printing allows for multiple printing using the same woodblock.
Parts of a baren
The baren is made up of 3 parts: the baren-shin, the ategawa, and the tsutsumikawa. This image depicts the baren-shin which is tucked inside and thus usually not visible.
Ategawa, Baren (2021-03-18) by Hidehiko Gotō and Photo:Shinya MaezakiKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory
The ategawa
Baren, a tool for woodblock printing (2021-03-18) by Hidehiko Gotō and Photo:Shinya MaezakiKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory
This is how a baren looks with the tsutsumikawa warpped around the ategawa that hides the baren-shin underneath.
How the baren is made
The making of the baren has traditionally been passed down orally. There is, however, a book published in 1973 called Baren on the traditional making of the tool using the notes written by Tarō Shimo. This was published privately by a group of people who felt the imminent danger of the craft disappearing.
Making the baren-shin (core)
The making of the baren-shin or the core begins with the selection of the material to be used. At Baren Studio Kikuhide the skin of a species of bamboo called P. bambusoides f. kashirodake is used to make traditional baren.
The thickness of the bamboo skin varies depending on the section of the bamboo culm – thinner towards the top and thicker in the middle. For this reason, the useable part is neither the top end nor the middle section, but only the part around 20 cm from the roots. As it is important to use bamboo skin with consistent thickness when making the baren-shin, only high-grade skin is meticulously selected. The actual useable amount of the selected bamboo skin is actually very little.
Once the bamboo skin is selected, the next task is the extraction of the epidermis. To facilitate the peeling process, the skin is soaked in water for 6 minutes. Once the skin is adequately soaked, a cut is made in the epidermis.
Using the mouth and hands, the epidermis is then slowly peeled off from the incision.
With the epidermis removed, the next step is the splitting of bamboo skin for weaving the baren-shin. This is done by using a handmade device with needles over a rubber mat. Using this device allows the craftsman to split the bamboo skin to equal width.
Splitting of bamboo skin, Baren (2021-03-18) by Hidehiko Gotō and Photo:Shinya MaezakiKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory
The width of the split skin will result in varied finish of the core and the various widths used range from about 3.0 mm down to about 0.6 mm. Rope made using skin cut to about 3.0 mm wide is categorized under Gokubuto (extra wide), while rope made using skin cut to about 0.6 mm is categorized under Chōgokuboso (super fine).
Next, the readied strips of bamboo skin are twisted together to make cords. 2 strips of bamboo skin are twisted to make one cord. As this step is called niko-wo-yoru or simplified to niko-yori – meaning “twisting two (strips)”, the finished cord is thus called a niko. Two niko cords are further twisted to make a yonko (four-strip) cord, and finally, two yonko cords are twisted into a hachiko (eight-strip) cord to complete a single cord ready to be turned into the baren-shin.
The finished cord is wound into a spiral shape to make the baren-shin. Incidentally, a single baren-shin requires 12-20 m of niko cords in the case of a thick hachiko cord, or 28 m in the case of a finer jūrokko (16-strip) cord.
Making the ategawa
The ategawa is the part that wraps around the baren-shin and which the printer’s hand comes in direct contact with during the printing process. The core of the ategawa is made of paper, particularly old washi paper. In comparison to modern paper, traditional washi paper is preferred because paper mulberry used to make traditional washi paper contains long and durable fibres.
Back side of Ategawa, Baren (2021-03-18) by Hidehiko Gotō and Photo:Shinya MaezakiKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory
Washi paper is cut to the shape of a wooden mould. Each ategawa requires a layer of about 40-50 sheets of washi paper pasted on top of one another. It takes one day to paste and dry each sheet. As the ategawa needs to be thin yet durable, bracken powder is used as paste instead of glue to avoid superfluous thickness. When the layering is done, the corners of the layered washi paper are then rounded off using a plane, and the overall shape trimmed to ensure the finished ategawa will be easily wrapped with bamboo skin in the final step.
Before the ategawa is fully ready, it must be covered with silk gauze called ro, over which lacquer will then be applied. The use of silk gauze is to ensure better absorption of the lacquer, which can contribute to improved durability of the baren. The lacquer is applied using the fukiurushi technique which involves using a pad made of fabric and cotton to absorb lacquer before brushing over the silk gauze. Using this technique, lacquer is abundantly applied to prevent it from overhardening. A total of 8 layers of lacquer are applied (including 6 of raw lacquer and 2 of filtered lacquer) before it is allowed to set over 6 months. The process of making the ategawa is complete once the baren-shin is tucked inside.
Making the tsutsumikawa
This step involves the making of the layer that will wrap around the entire baren. First, pre-moistened bamboo skin is rubbed down in all directions using the handle of a pair of scissors to even out the thickness of the bamboo skin. Among the many benefits, this process called mekosuri is effective for thinning down the skin, and it will allow better rubbing during the printing process, while preventing the bamboo skin from tearing or slackening,
After undergoing the mekosuri process, the bamboo skin is then softened by crumpling it. This step is particularly important for ensuring that the sections to be folded will not easily tear.
Next, the ategawa is placed over the tsutsumikawa and any unnecessary parts are trimmed off using a pair of scissors. Once trimmed, the tsutsumikawa is then ready to be wrapped around the ategawa.
The two long ends are each twisted into a thick cord.
The two cords are brought together in the middle and tied together using a string.
Making a handle, Baren (2021-03-18) by Hidehiko Gotō and Photo:Shinya MaezakiKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory
For the final finish, camellia oil is applied to the surface of the tsutsumikawa.
Types of baren
and printed textures
Various types of baren are available depending on the thickness of the core used, and this in turn will also affect the printed texture. A baren with a thick core and large cord bumps makes for effective printing that has a strong and solid texture. A finer baren, on the other hand, allows for gentle rubbing and more delicate textures.
Information provided by:
Baren Studio Kikuhide
Gasendo
Text written by:
Mao Iwasaki, Yu Takahara, Kyoto women's University
Photo by:
Syuzo Yamamoto: Gwasendo
Dr Maezaki Shinya
English translation by:
Photographing Cooperation
Gasendo
Baren Studio Kikuhide
Project Directors:
Dr Maezaki Shinya, Associate Professor,
Kyoto Women's University
