wrestlers spitzack woodblock woodcut mokuhanga print printmaking washi seattle art

"Wrestlers" engages a subject with deep precedent in Japanese woodblock printing: sumo prints, or sumo-e, formed a recognized genre within Edo-period Ukiyo-e, depicting named rikishi in formal poses or mid-bout. Whether Spitzack's print references sumo specifically or a broader image of grappling figures, the subject calls for strong contour and bold massing of forms — qualities well served by relief carving, where the cleared block holds the white space between figures and the raised key block carries the outline. Mokuhanga's water-based pigments allow flesh tones to be built up in transparent layers rather than printed as opaque ink, producing a softer modeling than hard-edged Western relief. As an American mokuhanga artist recognized at the 2024 International Mokuhanga Conference in Echizen, Spitzack works within a community that engages traditional Japanese subject categories alongside contemporary themes.