Amazing blocks! One thing is certain; nobody is ever going to carve a set of these by hand. And furthermore, I doubt anyone else will ever get it together to produce something similar with a machine. Unique art. Snap it up while you can.

Thanks, Tom, for your kind remarks!

AND, Dave... VERY HAPPY to hear the blocks arrived intact and printable -- even if a day later than the "guaranteed" latest delivery!

Hope they proof as expected!

Best,

Mike

Dave, when you have time, I think it'd be interesting to see an extreme close-up photo or scan of Mike's blocks to see what the carving looks like, as it was done mechanically versus your style of hand carving. Are the sides of the remaining sections vertical or cut on a slant as your hand-carved sections are? If you could get our eyes right down in that groove, it'd be interesting to see what things look like up close and personal.

Gary

I think it'd be interesting to see an extreme close-up photo or scan of Mike's blocks to see what the carving looks like

At the moment, no can do - the blocks are in a box in my entranceway, ready for today's trip down to Numabe-san's workshop.

Maybe while we're talking this afternoon, I'll snap something ...

But you're probably going to be disappointed - the actual cut areas look like some of those closeup shots of Martian rocks we've been seeing recently; down at that level the wood is torn, not cut smoothly. (Similar to the previous shots I showed you.)

Wouldn't those rough cut wood fibers then cause problems during printing, or are they far enough below the surface that they don't transfer pigment? Or is the extreme detail in this print enough to camouflage that?

Wouldn't those rough cut wood fibers then cause problems during printing,

Well, if this was a 'clean' image - something like an ukiyo-e print - the torn stuff would give the whole thing a fuzzy and blurred feel. But it doesn't seem to be having any effect on these prints, although that's a bit hard to tell without having been able to pull one with good sharp registration.

Here's the close-up you requested (click for enlargement). You can see up towards the top left an area that will print smooth colour; then as you move lower, it breaks up into leaves, etc.

I have no idea if this tearing is because Mike's tool bit was dull, or if this is just what you get when you use a router at this particular angle/speed/etc. ...

Would it be possible to substitute linoleum block for wood in the machine carving process? This might provide a more even surface less prone to swelling due to absorbing water in printing. I realize Dave's interest is in woodblock carving, but I would be interested in how well this process might work with another material.

Would linoleum be able to hold the fineness of cut?

The detail of the cutting reminds me of looking at images from a digital camera. My camera produces an almost organic looking grain at high magnification like filaments, not blocks as one might expect.