
Biography
Paul Furneaux is a Scottish artist and master printmaker born in Ellon, Scotland, in 1962, who has been working with mokuhanga (traditional Japanese watercolour woodblock printing) for over two decades. He is widely recognized as one of the leading mokuhanga practitioners in Europe and a highly regarded authority on printmaking in Scotland.
Furneaux studied Drawing and Painting at Edinburgh College of Art from 1982 to 1987. In 1996, he won the Monbusho Scholarship, which took him to Japan, where he completed a Master's degree in woodblock printing at Tama Art University in Tokyo, graduating in 2000. This extended period of study in Japan gave him a deep understanding of traditional mokuhanga techniques and materials.
In 2006, he was elected a Member of the Royal Scottish Academy (RSA), one of Scotland's highest honors for visual artists. His layered, abstract works echo the colours, shapes, and textures of both Scottish and Japanese landscapes. His concern for the ever-changing landscape and global warming is often present in his work, with rain appearing as an environmental response that continues to inhabit his thoughts.
Furneaux regularly leads workshops and demonstrations in mokuhanga and has served as a mentor to other European mokuhanga artists, including Vladimir Ivaneanu. He contributes to Mokublad, the newsletter of the Mokuhanga Magic community. He was selected for the juried exhibitions at the International Mokuhanga Conferences in Nara (2021) and Echizen (2024), where his prints were displayed in the Europe and Africa regional exhibition. His work is represented by Rabley Gallery in Wiltshire, England.
Key Facts
- Nationality
- 🇬🇧United Kingdom
- Movement
- Contemporary Mokuhanga
- Works Indexed
- 31
Frequently Asked Questions
Paul Furneaux is a Scottish artist and master printmaker born in Ellon, Scotland, in 1962, who has been working with mokuhanga (traditional Japanese watercolour woodblock printing) for over two decades. He is widely recognized as one of the leading mokuhanga practitioners in Europe and a highly regarded authority on printmaking in Scotland.
Paul Furneaux's work was shaped by the Contemporary Mokuhanga tradition in Japanese woodblock printmaking. Contemporary Mokuhanga: Contemporary mokuhanga (literally "wood-block print") encompasses artists working from approximately 1970 to the present who continue or reinvent traditional Japanese woodblock printing techniques.
Paul Furneaux's prints frequently feature nature, etching, abstract, night scenes, trees, landscapes.
Woodblock Prints by Paul Furneaux (31)

Untitled
2021
Mokuhanga (Japanese woodcut print)

GO:SEA
2022
Mokuhanga on two wooden panels

Fragments
2022
Mixed media on panel including mokuhanga, wood, stone, pigments , pencil and resin

IMC 2024 Echizen submission
Mokuhanga (Japanese woodblock)

Reflection
2025
Collage and mixed media on wood with resin coating

Moaning Moon
Mixed media collage on board

Untitled House
Mokuhanga, collage and pencil on board with resin coating

Blue Room
Unique Mokuhanga

Birch Trees
Mokuhanga

Bridge (Hashi)
Mokuhanga and collage on wood board

Clouds VI
Unique Mokuhanga

Clouds VIII
Unique Mokuhanga

Forest Approaches
Mixed media collage on board

Cross Roads
Mokuhanga and etching

Salt Ritual
Mixed media collage on board

Indigo: Black
Mokuhanga

Leaving
Mixed media collage on board

Mountain View
Mokuhanga on two aluminium panels

Moon Temple
Mokuhanga and etching with hand colouring

New Growth
Mixed media collage on board

Rain Garden
Mokuhanga on two panels

Rain Icon
Mokuhanga on gesso on board with resin coating

Salt Tree
Mixed media collage on board

Shakuhachi
Mokuhanga, pencil, wax, gesso and archival glue on wood