Tomoyo Ihaya demonstrates Chine Colle graphic art at Lalit Kala Akademi in Bhubaneswar. Picture by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, Feb. 23: The printmaking studio of Lalit Kala Akademi, Regional Centre, in the city was bustling with senior and young artists on Tuesday when Canada-based Japanese artist Tomoyo Ihaya shared with them a special technique of graphic art. The printmaker demonstrated techniques of Chine Colle graphic art.

The usual intaglio style of printmaking involves the incision of the required image on a metal plate on which ink is applied and then imprinted on a thick paper. In the Chine Colle method, the paper used is of a smoother and thinner variety. The artist does not need to prepare and print additional plates.

“This is an Italian technique in which the image produced is more creamy and has special effects of smoother textures. Since initially Chinese natural fibre paper was used, the method is known as Chine Colle. But now, a Japanese paper, gampi, made from a variety of wild mulberry plants, is used,” said Tomoyo. She demonstrated how the same image when produced on gampi has sharper details than on European paper.

Senior artists such as Ramahari Jena and Ramakrishna Vedala, regional secretary of the Lalit Kala Akademi here, were impressed with Tomoyo’s demonstration. “It was wonderful to work on Chine Colle. Many young artists also tried their hand at it and Tomoyo guided them well,” said Vedala. Tomoyo also shared her drawing and painting concepts during a deliberation on Wednesday at the same venue. Brought up in Tsu, a small city in Japan, she is a graduate in German literature from Rikkyo University in Tokyo. Printmaking and etching are her forte, for which she is acclaimed worldwide. Her recent works were based on her visit to Ladakh.

“I follow Tibetan Buddhism and loved the experiences in Ladakh. I have been to India nine times and this is my first visit to Odisha. In the West, people say ‘I don’t want to die’, while people in India say, ‘I want to live’. There is a positive yearning to live because of which I love coming here. The old and new co-exist here, which is interesting for an artist,” Tomoyo said.

“I was in Puri the last couple of days, and loved the food and energy of the town,” she said.