Anyone Using Awagami Papers?

[Jager]

One of the things I love about digital printmaking is the rich spectrum of papers available to us.  And although it is usually recommended, for good reason, that we not flit from paper to paper like overeager butterflies, but rather become intimate with a handful of papers that meet our needs... there is nevertheless an undeniable pleasure that comes from using a paper for the first time.

The Japanese Bamboo, Washi, and Kozo papers seem like some of the more exotic inkjet media available.  The thread last winter on Epson's Kozo had many of us hopeful and expectant.  Alas.

With Epson having spurned that market, at least in the States, I'm wondering if anyone is using any of the Awagami inkjet papers?  They seem to be reasonably available (including from Freestyle).  Many of them are breathtakingly expensive.  And there may be other characteristics (longevity?) that would preclude their frequent use.  But as a one-off media - for that once-in-a-blue-moon, very special image - they are very intriguing.

If anyone is using them, I'd love to hear your thoughts...

[Brian Gilkes]

Yes. Awagami papers are extremely fine and have a heritage dating to about 100 years after paper was invented - about 1300 years.
 Most papers are thin and coatings transparent so light can illuminate from the rear. This makes gamut lower than European or American papers. Think Japanese woodcut prints. Bizan can be obtained up to 300gsm , is then opaque, but ink load is still light. This paper is handmade with 4 true deckles and will set you back about $35 for an A3 sheet. The last time I used this paper the prints sold for over $1000  each. The thin papers require special mounting procedures. Using hemp, mulberry and other non wood, non cotton fibres the thin papers are much stronger than you might expect. If you or your clients go for saturated images you will not like Awagami papers. I find museums, top art galleries and collectors think they are very beautiful.

[deanwork]

Paper was actually invented and used in China about 100 AD. They didn't start making wood block prints until about 600 AD.
http://www.silk-road.com/artl/papermaking.shtml

Budist monks brought the technology to Japan around 600 AD, and by 800 AD Japan was the global leader fine paper making.

http://www.japanesepaperplace.com/abt-japanese-paper/about-washi.htm

There is a whole line of Awagami media recently offered  that they call IJ, which include an ink receptor coating. The dmax, resolution, dot spread, and color gamut are significantly better than the other fine art papers they make, when you are using them for inkjet purposes.

They have a new IJ pure Kozo paper that incorporates two layers, one kozo on the surface and alpha cellulose on the back. You print the image and then peel off the back for a very thin image, or you can leave the back on for a thicker sheet. It is called Kozo Dual Sided. The other one I"ve used with IJ coating is Kozo Thin White, which really isn't that thin. They also make a thick version. I really like them all.

I have used the much less expensive traditional uncoated Kozo, bleached and unbleached for about 14 years and still love them,

http://www.mulberrypaperandmore.com/p-81-bleached-mulberry-paper-roll-white-37-inches-x-325-feet.aspx


You can often find this same paper at Dick Blick art supply or Utrecht.


 but of you want more photo clarity and certainly better color gamut, the new coated kozo papers might be worth the extra expense. Great thing about Awagami is you can buy them in rolls 24" up to 44" ( for $400.00 ).

Another player in this new IJ Kozo market is Hiromi papers in Santa Monica. They are one of the best Japanese paper outlets in the world and do all kinds of media that one one comes close to. I ordered one of their boxes of inkjet coated Kozo and it had vertical lines in the mould that I didn't like. That look however is not unusual in traditional japanese papers. They have other sheets coated and uncoated that are certainly worth checking out. I haven't had the time to try them all.

Awagami makessome other versions for IJ that are a blend of Kozo, Hemp, Alpha Cellulose, etc. I haven't tried any of them yet.
I wish they had an IJ Gampi but maybe in the future. The stuff Moab sells is the same Awagami repackaged with some Indian name.

The best thing to do is to order the sample pack of 8.5x11 sheets that contain all the sheets and rolls offered.

john

[Rob Reiter]

I have used, and offered to my clients, both Awagami and Hiromi papers for several years now. Both these companies supplied samples and I had three seminars on printing with them that were quite popular with my clients. As others here have remarked, you will not find them to offer the highest color saturation or deepest blacks, so don't try them thinking you find something to replace Hahnemühle Photo Rag or Canson Edition Etching or any other traditional Western paper. These papers are unique and require a lot of experimentation to determine the kind of imagery that benefits from their unique characteristics.

I particularly like the Awagami Bizan-The most expensive, hand made paper with natural deckled edges. This paper especially, but all of their offerings, really, benefit from printing with generous borders and floated in a frame with no overeat-you definitely want to see this paper and not mat right up to the image!

And some of the thin, translucent offerings from both Awagami and Hiromi have an ethereal effect that seems especially useful for black/white printing.

Also, don't shy away from some of Hiromi's other offerings, even if they are not coated for inkjet printing. You can buy them one sheet at a time and they're not expensive. Of course, no one knows how long prints last on any of these papers, but I've not seen in signs of problems in at least five years of using anything I've been able to run through my printer.

[Brian Gilkes]

My information about heritage of Japanese paper came from Awagami staff which I neglected to check. The date of Awagami's origins at about 600-700 AD could well be correct but they may have ignored a few hundred years of Chinese history. In any case the papers are very beautiful.

[deanwork]

I did some tests last week with the IJ inkjet, coated Awagami washi papers.

If you order the sample pack you can see all the differences in surface.

Although I used only one profile that I made for the ij thin kozo, all the optical results were very similar. Of course I would make a custom profile for anyone that I would use for a final project.

I like them all, it's just a matter of personal preference on which one to choose. Their bamboo and Bizan are quite nice and also fairly thick, others vary in thickness.

They have a sheet called 2 layered that is a kozo that has the alpha cellulose paper backing and a kozo surface. You can peel the kozo from the backing after printing and have a very thin translucent image. With my two tests it was a little tricky peeling off the top surface without tearing the paper, but if you are careful it is doable.

I'm afraid all my tests were done with a neutral bw inkset so I don't have any comments about color gamut yet.

I compared all these prints with the same image printed on traditional uncoated kozo and there is quite an improvement in regard to resolution and dmax. The Hioromo coated wash papers have a very similar appearance.  However, don't expect any of these to come close to a print on say Canson matt rag. But that is not the reason to use these papers. I wish they had a coated gampi but so far I haven't found one.