Woodblock prints, from folk art to contemporary art.

Woodblock prints – an art form with a unique painting language – under the creative hands of Quang Ninh artists, have become impressive works of art, not only preserving traditional values ​​but also incorporating contemporary elements.

Woodblock printing is an art form with a unique language of painting.

In recent years, woodblock printing has undergone a significant transformation. Alongside traditional styles, contemporary artists are no longer confined to old patterns but have created new works that reflect the spirit of modern society.

When talking about woodblock prints in Quang Ninh, people immediately think of artist Vu Tu Khang (Quang Yen town). He has painstakingly built a treasure trove of art with nearly 100 woodblock prints and lacquer paintings that are rich in traditional folk art.

The woodblock prints by artist Vu Tu Khang depict in great detail images of festivals, such as fishing village weddings, Yen Tu festivals, Coc village boat racing festivals, spring worship ceremonies, as well as daily life scenes from boats, docks, rice stalks, fields, etc., in a style very close to Vietnamese folk art.

For Vu Tu Khang, woodblock printing has been his lifelong companion. Through his meticulously crafted works, we can see the persistent artistic effort required to achieve a unique and highly valuable quality in woodblock printing – a "rare commodity" among the painting materials of artists in Quang Ninh as well as throughout the country.

The colored woodblock print "Traditional Craft Village" by artist Vu Tu Khang.

While artist Vu Tu Khang is representative of traditional folk-themed woodblock prints, artist Le Hai Thanh (Uong Bi City) primarily explores this genre with contemporary themes, infusing it with the beauty of modern life. Choosing woodblock printing as his main medium, artist Hai Thanh has created over 30 woodblock prints to date, ranging from monochrome to color, with various themes...

Besides the two artists Vu Tu Khang and Le Hai Thanh, who specialize in woodblock printing, several other artists from Quang Ninh also have scattered woodblock print works, such as artists Dao The Am, Nguyen Van Hiep, Vu Van Hung, Pham Hai Yen, etc.

To create a woodblock print, the artist is both an artist and a craftsman. The process of creating a woodblock print involves many steps, from sketching on paper and carving on wood to printing on paper… the most elaborate step being carving the printing plate.

With traditional methods, black and white woodblock prints only require one stencil. For color prints, each color in the picture has its own separate woodblock, and the outline is usually black, printed last. Therefore, in a color print, the number of color areas corresponds to the number of woodblocks for each color area.

Artist Hai Thanh is creating the composition for a painting on a woodblock.

The woodblock print by artist Hai Thanh after completion.

Another technique for creating color prints is woodblock printing. With this technique, the artist only needs one wooden stencil for all the colors. Once a color is printed, that color is chiseled away from the stencil. Each subsequent color is layered on top of the previous one, with multiple colors creating overlapping layers. Typically, light or pale colors are printed first, followed by darker or darker colors, leaving only the black outline at the end.

Artist Hai Thanh explained: "The principle for creating woodblock prints is that what needs to be raised is left as is, while the recessed parts must be carved out. The process of printing woodblock prints also requires certain techniques to ensure sharp lines, preventing smudging or fading of ink, and avoiding overlapping lines. For color prints, if the printing method is applied—that is, printing layer by layer on a stencil—it requires meticulous work and excellent visual thinking from the artist."

The woodblock print "Heroic Vietnamese Mother" by artist Dao The Am.

For modern artists, choosing woodblock printing as a medium is not simple, and creating a piece takes a long time because it involves a lengthy process of carving the outlines. However, thankfully, the trend of woodblock printing has recently begun to resurface, and artists in Quang Ninh are enthusiastically experimenting with this style of painting.

Woodblock prints in Quang Ninh today not only preserve traditional cultural values ​​but also integrate with contemporary art trends, offering viewers unexpected aesthetic experiences and demonstrating the timeless value and beauty of woodblock printing.

Source: https://baoquangninh.vn/tranh-khac-go-tu-dan-gian-den-duong-dai-3332037.html