Untitled

This untitled mokuhanga print by Finnish artist Harina Raina exemplifies contemporary Nordic engagement with the Japanese water-based woodblock tradition. Without a descriptive title, the work invites the viewer to focus on the formal qualities the medium itself produces: the soft tonal gradients of [bokashi](/glossary/bokashi) achieved by brushing pigment unevenly across the block before pulling an impression, the visible grain of the woodblock transferred onto [washi](/glossary/washi) paper, and the matte absorption characteristic of water-based pigments rather than oil-based inks. Mokuhanga prints of this scale typically use multiple blocks, one for each color area, registered with [kento](/glossary/kento) marks cut into the block edges. The [baren](/glossary/baren)—a disc of coiled bamboo cord wrapped in bamboo sheath—presses the paper into the inked block, and the pressure variations produce the textural subtleties visible in finished impressions. Raina's selection for the 2021 International Mokuhanga Conference juried exhibition in Nara situates this work within the IMC's mission of supporting practitioners outside Japan who maintain traditional technique while developing personal vocabulary. Finnish mokuhanga remains a small field, and Raina is among the artists sustaining its connection to the wider Nordic and international network.