VISITING PRINTMAKER HARUKA FURUSAKA

The traditional technique of Japanese woodblock printmaking is mainly associated with the classical ukiyo-e prints created during the Edo period. However, many artists working today use the traditional technique for contemporary expression. The Japanese technique, which uses water-based ink and hand printing, differs from the Western technique of relief printing which uses oil-based inks and a press. The Japanese technique has the advantage of requiring only natural non-toxic materials and very little space.

During Asian Arts Week Haruka Furusaka will conduct demonstrations on Japanese woodblock printing at the University of South Carolina and present a lecture about her work at the Columbia Museum of Art. She will also work with the students in Mary Robinson’s Spring 2007 Honors College course on Japanese woodblock printing and help the students create their own prints. These prints will be displayed at the Community Gallery of the Columbia Museum of Art.

Haruka Furusaka is an independent artist living in Osaka, Japan, who works in woodblock printing, watercolor and painting. She received a BFA in oil painting from Musashimo Art University in Tokyo. Furusaka worked as an assistant to the director of Nagasawa Art Park Pilot Program on the island of Awaji. In 2004 Furusaka was invited to conduct printmaking workshops at five colleges and universities in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, including a workshop at the Southern Graphics Council Conference held at Rutgers Center for Innovative Print and Paper. In 2005, she was invited to lead a technical demonstration on Japanese woodblock printing at the Impact IV International Printmaking Conference in Berlin, Germany. Furusaka has exhibited her work extensively in the United States, Germany, Poland, Finland and Japan.