Ukiyo-e Woodblock Printing - Sachiko by Bram Tan

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With this 3D printed woodblock Ukiyo-e technique, you can create as many unique pictures as you like. Printing is a super relaxing way to spend the day and a great hobby that brings people together. All you need to get started is someone with a 3D printer and some basic art supplies. These 3D files were carefully created by hand-tracing lines and color-separating instead of relying on automatic software, resulting in warmer reproductions of the original artwork. This process produces a more beautiful and authentic version of famous Japanese works, much like listening to a vinyl record rather than digital music. You can print your own pictures using acrylic, watercolor or ink on paper or cloth. The possibilities are endless! This design is a portrait print for an A4-sized paper, but I highly recommend printing it larger to have a beautiful border. It consists of 7 'woodblocks' named with numbers that indicate the order of printing. You can refer to my finished image or even the original artwork for color reference, but feel free to choose your own colors. I number all the files to show the correct order in which they should be used, so you don't accidentally hide layers beneath each other. Note: woodblock number 2 requires three colors. See my picture guide to see which groups of features should be colored differently. The plates will last for many prints and if you use acrylic, which dries quickly, you won't need to wash the first layer off. In fact, the surface gets even better after one layer has dried onto it. However, you should wash paint off from subsequent print sessions to avoid build-up. I usually soak them in soapy water and wash them all together when I'm done with a session. 3D Print settings: I personally use a 0.6mm nozzle and a 0.3mm layer for speed, but the regular 0.4mm nozzle with a 0.2mm layer will give you even better detail, although it takes longer. The prints generally require a 300mm x 300mm print size, so if your 3D printer is smaller, just scale the plates down. But remember to only scale in the X and Y directions, not the Z, as this maintains the same thickness. Use printer settings that create 100% solids rather than honeycomb inside. The results will be much better. Don't just set 100% infill setting to achieve a solid print. This will normally make the 3D printer do long stretches of print head zigzagging while it tries to do a fine honeycomb structure, causing lots of vibrations and noise. Instead, specify a high enough number for the 'top/bottom infill layers', higher than the actual layers required to print the panel, and the printer will do a more efficient back-and-forth movement pattern for every single layer, resulting in a smoother version of 100% infill with less vibrations. After printing each plate, use a sanding block and 120+ grit sandpaper to make the top surface really flat so it holds paint evenly. This doesn't take long if you've used PLA plastic, as it's quite soft. Note: The solid strip of plastic at the top doesn't need sanding; it's there for attaching your paper using masking tape - see my instruction PDF called 'The Kit'. More designs are coming soon!