The Sumi-e Book

by Yolanda Mayhall

This ancient Japanese technique is ideal for teaching art to the beginner because the student is quickly able create successful pictures with four basic brushstrokes. Mastery of Sumi-e leads to new levels of creativity.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Reference, Japan

128 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1989

Reviews

[Melody Daggerhart · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is set up in four chapters following the four basic strokes required for sumi-e. Each chapter begins with the easiest strokes, and just like with kanji, the student is to follow the direction of the stroke and make as few strokes as possible. Sumi-e and shodou are disciplined arts in that the goal is meditative, but precise. The brush is held vertically for most strokes, and the brush itself determines the shape of the ink (as opposed to just drawing with a paintbrush). The character won’t look right if you do a kanji stroke the wrong way, and it will look messy if you have to go back and redo the lines because the brush holds a lot of ink and water, and the rice paper is very thin and absorbs so much that it spreads into blossoms very easily. The name of the game for this art is control, but with a fluid and graceful expression. The author gives lots of practice ideas that increase in difficulty, then branches into compositions. At the end of each main lesson, extra lessons are given on subjects that use the same strokes. For example, the bamboo strokes can also be used to paint birds.

I like the way the author’s instructions are set up for practice as much as explanation. In other words, she doesn’t just show how to do the stroke. She shows how to practice the stroke in varying size and repetition, in ways that gradually increase in complexity. It makes the lessons very doable, in my opinion.

I really like this book. It's well-organized, thorough, and very clear in its presentation, language, and illustrations. It’s making me wish I had not stopped studying shodou, so that I would have better control over my brush for sumi-e. So, I might have to set aside one day a week for shodou and sumi-e lessons once more. … Somehow. … I can create a 25-hour day, right?

Wonderful book! Practical and inspiring if you’re interested in this kind of art.

[Ginger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative book on the art of Sumi-e painting. Explains the origins of the art, which is important to me.

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Useful for beginners, but there are better options out there.

[Catherine Fitzsimmons · Rating 1 out of 5]

After my first attempt with sumi-e, I decided some instruction on the subject was in order. I requested this book from the library because online reviews touted it as a, if not the, definitive book on the subject for beginners.

I must say, I disagree with those reviews. When my dad got me a sumi-e set for Christmas, it contained a decorative box with the supplies inside. No instructions, no introduction, just materials which I largely didn't recognize or understand their purpose. Google search yielded some basic information on at least what those materials were, and I managed to wing my way through my first painting, though as an example, it wasn't until after that first painting that I found a blog post that stated one should spend 20-30 minutes grinding the ink before beginning, not the very few I had done. So, when I sought out a book on sumi-e, I was looking for a complete introduction.

This book was not that. It only barely touched upon what the materials were, without even getting into how they were used, and most of the book was devoted to the "Four Gentlemen" - the common brush strokes historically used in sumi-e, with which one can supposedly paint any subject. Even that information I found minimal and consisted less of how to produce those brush strokes than of what one can paint using them. The book didn't even get into the chop, an artist's personal seal, which as I understand is as important a design element of sumi-e as the painting itself. All in all, I found the book a poor introduction to the art, and can only see it possibly being effective in conjunction with classes or other instruction. I really got very little out of this book and would not recommend it to anyone looking for the same type of basic information on the medium as I was.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good way to explore Sumi-e on your own but nothing can replace a good teacher or patience, practice, and persistence!

[James · Rating 2 out of 5]

I used to own it. These books were good when they came out but printing on later works is much better.