Untitled

Bareham's untitled work demonstrates her engagement with mokuhanga, the water-based Japanese woodblock printing process that distinguishes contemporary European practice from oil-based Western relief printing. Without the descriptive cue of a title, the print invites viewing on formal grounds — the registration of multiple blocks, the absorption qualities of washi, and the gradient effects achievable through [bokashi](/glossary/bokashi) application during inking. Contemporary mokuhanga artists working in Europe frequently approach the medium through abstraction or pared-back imagery, departing from the figurative traditions of [bijin-ga](/glossary/bijin-ga), [meisho-e](/glossary/meisho-e), and [kacho-e](/glossary/kacho-e) while preserving the technical vocabulary of [baren](/glossary/baren)-burnished impressions on hand-laid paper. The choice to leave a print untitled aligns with a strain of contemporary mokuhanga that emphasizes process and material qualities — the relationship between cut block, pigment viscosity bound with rice paste (nori), and paper fiber — over narrative subject. Bareham's practice, situated within the IMC-affiliated network, reflects this orientation toward the medium as inheritance rather than illustration, treating each print as a record of a specific encounter between hand, tool, and surface.