HMPC - Etegami

While going through the July/August 2017 (page 66) Cloth, Paper, Scissors magazine I came across an article, "Mixed-Media Etegami: A Take on Tradition" by Diana Trout, and thought this group would be a great venue to give it a try.

Etegami is a form of traditional Japanese folk art, also referred to as mail art. Literally translated as "picture letters", etegami are cardstock-weight rice paper cards painted with Japanese-style watercolour. Words are always added to etegami, and you can't call it etegami until you mail it.

The look, or aesthetic of etegami is made bold with black lines around the subject. The focal point is usually something from nature, illustrating the current season, or an animal.

Etegami is supposed to be clumsily executed. The black outlines are meant to be shaky, with thick and thin lines, giving the artwork a charming and distinctive look.

Real etegami cards have different level of "blurs" which refers to the papers absorbency - 1 being the least absorbent and 5 the most. It's suggested you start with a 1-3 blur when first starting to use real etegami paper.

For this swap, we'll just use watercolour paper. For the black lines, instead of using ink, you can use any kind of permanent black ink, brush pen or marker.

Although the author of the article used mixed media on her cards, this swap does not stipulate any embellishments on it. Just ink and paint, please. Don't forget your words!

There are many examples of etegami on-line. Try it out, and have fun making your postcard. Send naked and stamped - remember, it's not etegami until it's mailed!

For this first card, don't try something complicated; just enjoy the process. I suggest doing something like the image above; a simple piece of fruit.

Cards don't have to be sent until the new year, but it would be best not to wait until then to practise making one! It'll take a bit to learn how much water to add to your brush, and what medium you'll want to use to add the black lines.