April Vollmer

April Vollmer (born 1951) is an American mokuhanga artist, educator, and author who has played a pivotal role in bringing traditional Japanese woodblock printing techniques to a broad Western audience. Her book "Japanese Woodblock Print Workshop," published by Watson-Guptill in 2015, has become the standard English-language instructional text on mokuhanga technique, introducing thousands of artists and printmaking students to the materials, tools, and methods of the Japanese tradition. Through her teaching, writing, and advocacy, Vollmer has done as much as any single individual to establish mokuhanga as a viable and vibrant practice in the American and international printmaking community.

Born in 1951, Vollmer studied art and developed her printmaking practice over decades, eventually focusing on mokuhanga after recognizing the medium's unique artistic possibilities. She studied the technique through workshops, residencies in Japan, and sustained independent practice, eventually achieving a level of mastery that enabled her both to produce accomplished prints and to teach the technique with clarity and authority.

Vollmer's artistic work encompasses abstract and semi-abstract compositions that explore the distinctive qualities of the mokuhanga medium. Her prints investigate the behavior of water-based pigments on different papers, the textural possibilities of carved woodblocks, and the luminous color effects achievable through the hand-printing process. Many of her compositions incorporate natural forms — leaves, water patterns, geological textures — rendered with a degree of abstraction that emphasizes their visual and tactile qualities rather than their representational content.

Her teaching has been extensive and influential. Based in New York, she has taught mokuhanga workshops across the United States and internationally, training a generation of artists in the traditional techniques. Her workshops emphasize both the practical skills of carving, pigment preparation, and printing and the aesthetic principles that guide the Japanese approach to printmaking. Many artists who are now active in the international mokuhanga community cite Vollmer as an important early influence.

Beyond teaching and her own artistic practice, Vollmer has been closely involved with the International Mokuhanga Conference, serving on its advisory board, and has participated in conferences, exhibitions, and collaborative projects that have strengthened the global mokuhanga community. Her prints have been exhibited in the United States, Japan, and Europe, and her work is held in private and institutional collections.