This isn't my own 'personal' workspace; this is one of the workstations upstairs over the Asakusa shop. I haven't done any 'real' printing work since we opened up this shop, but around ten years ago, on a web page with a workshop Soundscape, I showed a similar photo of the workbench in my Ome home (to which I might be returning sooner rather than later ...)

The numbers in that image:

1. the sample print chosen from the previous testing to serve as a 'model' for this batch
2. a water brush, resting on top of its bucket (with just around a centimetre of water inside)
3. on the small shelf in front of me, another small cup with water (and a 'hakobi' applicator)
4. the brush for the colour in use
5. the block set for this print (carved on both sides)
6. the baren in use, and a couple of others standing by
7. the bench is positioned on a raised floor, leaving a space for my legs underneath
8. iTunes!
9. the collection of mixed pigments - and matching brushes - for this print
10. the stack of paper waiting for printing (in-stack)
11. a small cup with the pigment for this impression
12. a small cup with paste
13. the block itself
14. the stack of printed paper (out-stack)

Here is a closeup. This is of course all set up ready for use by a left-handed printer - baren and brush on the left, the out-stack on the right ...

It's not so clear from that image but all of the 'active' parts of this setup - the piece I am sitting on, the printing bench itself, and the shelf holding the in-stack - are all moveable; they slide back and forth. Once I am 'down in the hole', I slide my seat forward a bit and pull the printing bench towards me over my knees, then when I am ready to begin printing, the in-stack tray also slides forward a bit, putting the paper perfectly within reach.

Looking from the side, you can see that the printing bench itself is built on an angle. This is an extremely important point - the printer's forearm ends up moving over the bench in the same orientation as the block itself, and the wrist is never bent or 'cocked' (we'll see how this works in later images ...)

That's the basic setup ... in the next post, we'll see how the action moves along ...

This thread continues in Octopus and Diver Printing (4) | Information on getting the print is here