A digital distraction? The role of digital tools and distributed intelligence in woodblock printmaking practice. Issue 3 (3rd July 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Chittenden, Tara
• Is Part Of: Digital creativity. Volume 32:Issue 3(2021)
• Page Start: 165
• Page End: 187
• Publication Date: 2021-07-03
• Subjects: Woodblock printmaking -- laser -- CNC -- Mike Lyon -- Japanese -- intelligence; Computer-aided design -- Periodicals; Computer-assisted instruction -- Periodicals; Artificial intelligence -- Periodicals; 620.00420285
• DOI: 10.1080/14626268.2021.1964539
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1462-6268

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Artists' adoption of CNC devices and related technologies is making possible novel printmaking processes and variations on techniques. Such changes suggest a need to broaden our understanding of what constitutes a print under contemporary technological conditions. This article looks at the human-machine relationship and the state of creative cognition in the act of woodblock printmaking. Connections between the printmaker's and programmer's notions of creating lines indicate different ways of thinking-drawing space and position the resulting 2D print not just as the transfer of ink from block to paper but also existing as lines of code and as a 3D space. By drawing parallels between the embodied yet distributed act of traditional Japanese woodblock printmaking and the experience of CNC computerized carving in the work of Mike Lyon, I explore how woodblock printmaking might facilitate a productive collaboration with digital carving technologies.