Jim Wheeler

A mokuhanga portrait of Jim Wheeler, continuing Reed's series of New Zealand arts figures rendered through Japanese water-based woodblock technique. The likeness is built from carved tonal areas rather than descriptive line: a keyblock supplies the facial structure while supporting blocks contribute hair, ground and any second hue. Bokashi gradations across the face are produced by brushing graded sumi onto the dampened block immediately before each impression, then burnishing the paper with a baren so that the pigment sinks into the washi. The result is a soft, matte black with absorbent edges, distinct from the harder line of oil-based relief. Consistent with the 2021 IMC sumi exhibition theme in Nara, the palette is likely concentrated in black with at most a restrained supporting tone. As a portrait, the print operates within Reed's wider project of using mokuhanga, a transplanted Japanese tradition, to record the visual arts community of New Zealand.