Woodblock Prints by

Norio Takamiya

Norio Takamiya was born in Japan and trained Woodblock Printer who migrated to Australia in 1995. Norio's work is a comment on cultures, on the interaction between east and west, and of the long tradition of "borrowing" ideas from other cultures.

Woodblock printing was originally introduced to Japan from China, probably about the seventh century. It was mainly controlled by the Buddhists and available only to priests and the aristocracy until the Edo period (1603-1867) during which it became popular with the general public as well. These multi-coloured woodblock prints were called Ukiyoe (ukiyo means “floating world” and e means painting). Since Japan opened its doors to the outside world in 1868, the West, especially Western artists have been fascinated with its colour and composition.