Awagami Kitakata

[TheFlyingCamera]

has anyone used this paper for alt process, more specifically platinum/palladium? If so, do you have any tips (does it need an acid pre-bath, etc.)? I just bought a pack of it after really liking the Awagami Platinum Gampi but finding that it is hard to come by and stupidly expensive (like $10/sheet for a 9x12 inch sheet).

 

[MurrayMinchin]

has anyone used this paper for alt process, more specifically platinum/palladium? If so, do you have any tips (does it need an acid pre-bath, etc.)? I just bought a pack of it after really liking the Awagami Platinum Gampi but finding that it is hard to come by and stupidly expensive (like $10/sheet for a 9x12 inch sheet).

In my rummaging through the Internet researching papers I found this from the Awagami website...

Our most famous paper, Kitakata is composed mostly of Philippine gampi fiber and exudes a warm natural tone. Do not be fooled by imitations - this is the one and original Awagami Kitakata. Kitakata's resilience makes it a worldwide favorite paper for printmaking, drawing, mixed-media, book-arts and alternative photography. Although listed as "unsized", Kitakata's gampi fibers exhibit natural sizing-like characteristics thus requiring no additional sizing

Awagami Factory - Japanese WASHI PAPER Online Shop

‘Awagami Factory’ is a registered brand of washi papers crafted under the direction of the Fujimori family in Tokushima, Japan. Responding to the needs of artists & creators, Awagami focuses on research and development in an ongoing effort to integrate washi into contemporary life. Awagami...

awagami.com

...and this reference which suggests it should be a go:

Platinum Printing with Japanese Papers

Following on from an earlier post where we discussed the differences between printing with platinum and palladium on watercolour and printmaking paper as well as highlighting the exquisite prints o…

artofplatinum.wordpress.com

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

In my rummaging through the Internet researching papers I found this from the Awagami website...

Awagami Factory - Japanese WASHI PAPER Online Shop

‘Awagami Factory’ is a registered brand of washi papers crafted under the direction of the Fujimori family in Tokushima, Japan. Responding to the needs of artists & creators, Awagami focuses on research and development in an ongoing effort to integrate washi into contemporary life. Awagami...

awagami.com

...and this reference which suggests it should be a go:

Platinum Printing with Japanese Papers

Following on from an earlier post where we discussed the differences between printing with platinum and palladium on watercolour and printmaking paper as well as highlighting the exquisite prints o…

artofplatinum.wordpress.com

Thanks! On that second link, it's too bad the video is blocked. I'll give it a test and see how it turns out for me. I saw a thread on an alt process mailing list I belong to that talked about problems with Kitakata paper getting pink highlights, without a clear resolution to the cause/cure, but that was also talking about Legion brand kitakata, not the Awagami.

 

[MurrayMinchin]

No problem...my wife accuses me of being a useless information sponge.

Hope it works!

 

[MurrayMinchin]

Also found these with a 'platinum' search at Hiromi Paper...handmade...expensive:

Search: 4 results found for "platinum"

Your source for Japanese papers and papers from around the world.

store.hiromipaper.com

They have machine made offerings on rolls as well.

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

Also found these with a 'platinum' search at Hiromi Paper...handmade...expensive:

Search: 4 results found for "platinum"

Your source for Japanese papers and papers from around the world.

store.hiromipaper.com

They have machine made offerings on rolls as well.

Yikes! And while I like the idea of playing with papers, printing on something at 17gsm scares the living daylights out of me.

 

[MurrayMinchin]

Yikes! And while I like the idea of playing with papers, printing on something at 17gsm scares the living daylights out of me.

No kidding. I've seen videos of people working with paper that looks like a couple layers of spider webs.

 

[MurrayMinchin]

Think I'll be wandering down Chine Colle Polymer Photogravure soon, so have been scoping out the lighter weight papers.

Blissfully unaware of all that awaits me. Wish me luck...

 

[faberryman]

How would you mount a 17gsm paper?

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

How would you mount a 17gsm paper?

very carefully probably use mulberry hinges and wheat paste, attaching the t-hinges at the extreme corners.

 

[faberryman]

very carefully probably use mulberry hinges and wheat paste, attaching the t-hinges at the extreme corners.

Perhaps if you used an over mat so that where the hinges were pasted to the paper wasn't visible.

 

[nmp]

Here is one video that gives an idea what might be involved - on Tosha Washi paper:



:Niranjan.

 

[MurrayMinchin]

How would you mount a 17gsm paper?

There appears to be as many different ways as there are artists.

Here's one...ink the plate...apply gossamer thin paper...apply wheat or rice starch...lay over the "parent sheet" and run it through the press.

So not dry mounted...rather it becomes fused into the parent sheet.

 

[fgorga]

has anyone used this paper for alt process, more specifically platinum/palladium? If so, do you have any tips (does it need an acid pre-bath, etc.)? I just bought a pack of it after really liking the Awagami Platinum Gampi but finding that it is hard to come by and stupidly expensive (like $10/sheet for a 9x12 inch sheet).

I have not used that particular paper, but I have tried samples of other Awagami papers including some pretty light weight ones. I'm not sure if I tried them with Pt/Pd but I certainly tried them for salted-paper, my main process. All of this was several years ago, so the details are fuzzy in my memory and buried in my notes! As far as I know none of their papers have carbonate buffers so they should not need pre-treatment with acid.

Also, most of the thin Japanese papers I tried are surprisingly strong. They need to be handled with care but are not impossible to work with. My usual working method for most processes is to use multiple trays for processing and to transfer the print from try to tray. With thin papers, I used a single tray and poured solutions into and out of the tray. I made sure the print stuck to the bottom of the tray while pouring solutions out and made sure the paper floated again when new solution was added. This works best with a tray one size larger than the paper as it allows one to avoid wrinkling the paper near the spout when pouring out solutions.

Having said all of that, after testing several Awagami papers, I do not use them in my practice. As you say, they are very expensive and, more importantly, I thought that the paper was taking attention away from the image.

One way to help with costs is to purchase large sheets of paper if they are available and to cut them down yourself. This also gives you more flexibility in sheet size when printing.

I do this with all of the papers I print on routinely. A good source of many papers in large sheets is Acuity Papers, a nice small company. (I have no connection to them, other than as a satisfied customer.)

Acuity does carry some Awagami papers (see: https://www.acuitypapers.com/category-s/163.htm) but I did not see Platinum Gampi listed. They might special order you paper if you ask.

 

[fgorga]

Here is one video that gives an idea what might be involved - on Tosha Washi paper:



:Niranjan.

Thanks for this video... I've bookmarked it in case I try thin papers again.

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

Perhaps if you used an over mat so that where the hinges were pasted to the paper wasn't visible.

The mulberry hinging tape is very light - depending on how translucent the paper is, it might not be visible. But yes, I would overmat the print if for no other reason than to keep it from being too wrinkly.

I made a print on the kitakata last night. It definitely needs sizing. I tried to pour my usual amount of palladium on for a given print size and it soaked in so fast as to be un-spreadable. I would have to use maybe 5 times as much solution. With today's economics, that ain't gonna happen. I sized a small piece and coated it- that worked much better, but it still probably needs 25% more solution (if my normal drop count for that print size is 4 drops I would need 5). I had some issues with sizing the test print, so I sized a second sheet and while the sizing went on much more evenly, the dried paper has taken on a strange craquelure like appearance - the surface is still smooth, but there are all these dark lines in the paper now where the sizing soaked in to the fibers. I'll try printing something on that and see how it looks, but I'm thinking this paper is a total bust.

 

[faberryman]

The mulberry hinging tape is very light - depending on how translucent the paper is, it might not be visible. But yes, I would overmat the print if for no other reason than to keep it from being too wrinkly.

I am sure mulberry hinge paper varies in weight, but the product I saw is 52 gsm compared to 17 gsm of the Sekishu Torinoko Gampi, which looks almost transparent.

 

[MurrayMinchin]

...but I'm thinking this paper is a total bust.

Rats.

Oh well, they say to become a master at anything you need to make 10,000 mistakes, so even though it didn't work, it gets put in the experience quiver for possible use in the future.

Dare to Dream!

 

[MurrayMinchin]

Found this (click on first photo for slideshow with written notes) by Jake Groenhof, explaining his technique for keeping 17 gsm Japanese paper flat while coating, drying, and exposing...might be of use to someone here

Platinum Process

Visit the post for more.

www.fallrivereditions.com

 

[Patrick Robert James]

There appears to be as many different ways as there are artists.

Here's one...ink the plate...apply gossamer thin paper...apply wheat or rice starch...lay over the "parent sheet" and run it through the press.

So not dry mounted...rather it becomes fused into the parent sheet.

That is pretty slick. I might try that with the thin Kozo paper I use sometimes, minus the press of course. Thanks for the link.