David Bull's Setup

February 26, 2013 4:04 PM

MeFi's own David Bull gets interviewed for The Setup, and gives a shoutout to MetaFilter too.

Not sure if this would have been appropriate for an FPP (and I just used mine for today anyway) but when I saw this I just had to share it. David is a scholar and a gentleman; I ordered a print from him for the holidays and I screwed up the address and he was so nice about re-mailing it for me and just an all-around awesome person.

posted by Doleful Creature to MetaFilter-Related at 4:04 PM (25 comments total)

Dave's "A Story a Week" has a podcast? How did I miss that?
posted by ocherdraco at 4:39 PM on February 26

That is one staggeringly awesome userpage. Worth it for that alone.
posted by bonehead at 4:40 PM on February 26 [1 favorite]

Yay for woodblock100! Would be a bit thin for a post but here's fine.
posted by cortex (staff) at 4:46 PM on February 26

Oh, wow. He describes washi as software.

*Love*.
posted by running order squabble fest at 5:21 PM on February 26

I have Dave's prints at my house too. He is great and this was cool to see.

The usesthis set of articles is really interesting in its own right. I'm back in there, I bet a lot of other MeFites are.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 5:33 PM on February 26

Oh, wow. As a craftsman of sorts, I am humbled and awed by his work. Those pieces he links to in his profile are jaw-droppingly beautiful.
posted by Devils Rancher at 6:12 PM on February 26

woodblock100's posts here and his work make me happy to see.
posted by Burhanistan at 6:41 PM on February 26 [2 favorites]

OK, so first I need a mail box.
posted by carsonb at 6:42 PM on February 26

I just read a hugely entertaining manga on how to make a "baren". I will likely never make one but it was nevertheless fantastic.
posted by arcticseal at 6:44 PM on February 26 [1 favorite]

Downstairs in the workshop it’s the beautiful Japanese washi of course! The type I use is known as Echizen hosho

Shoutout to Fukui! Whoop!
posted by KokuRyu at 7:07 PM on February 26

His work is truly amazing.
posted by Miko at 7:48 PM on February 26 [1 favorite]

Those are gorgeous prints. Utterly gorgeous.
posted by immlass at 8:12 PM on February 26

Holy cow! Go to this link from David's profile and follow all the steps. It is amazing.
posted by JohnnyGunn at 9:11 PM on February 26 [1 favorite]

Yay for woodblock100. Fish around his site for his Michener story, which I share with lots of college students looking for inspiration.
posted by LobsterMitten (staff) at 9:31 PM on February 26

Hey! Quite a little shock to see this thread in my MetaFilter RSS this morning ... Thanks for all the nice comments, gang!

Seconding the comment not to miss the Michener piece. It seems a bit trite to say so, but yeah, it was life-changing for me.

As for the 'process steps' that were linked above, there are a lot of newer ones on the site too, notable a dozen of them on this page.

shoutout to Fukui ...

Might be a much better 'shout' coming up in a couple of months. After doing the NHK program visiting Aomori this past summer, I made a pitch to the program producers to do an episode featuring the little village in Fukui where my paper comes from. It hasn't been green-lighted yet, but they tell me that it has a good chance. KokuRyu, I'll let you know when we get up there ...
posted by woodblock100 at 10:09 PM on February 26 [5 favorites]

There seems to be no limit to the talent of MeFites.
posted by Cranberry at 11:04 PM on February 26

Those pieces he links to in his profile are jaw-droppingly beautiful.

My wife and I bought his entire Mystique series by subscription, and now have 18 of his prints framed in a group on our wall. They're more awe-inspiring in person than they are on a screen.
posted by fatbird at 11:11 PM on February 26

Also, have to say that I really like that tag: 'me fish out out' ...
posted by woodblock100 at 11:31 PM on February 26 [1 favorite]

I made a pitch to the program producers to do an episode featuring the little village in Fukui where my paper comes from. It hasn't been green-lighted yet, but they tell me that it has a good chance. KokuRyu, I'll let you know when we get up there ...

Imadate. I know it well. Fukui is such a fantastic, lovely place.
posted by KokuRyu at 12:06 AM on February 27

The Michener piece is very inspirational, thank you.
posted by Foci for Analysis at 6:03 AM on February 27

If pigs could fly
posted by Sailormom at 8:03 AM on February 27

and if I didn't have to many tabs open that comment might make sense
posted by Sailormom at 8:25 AM on February 27 [1 favorite]

It's okay Sailormom, I like the pic and forwarded to several of my coworkers. Serendipity!
posted by Doleful Creature at 9:58 AM on February 27

me fish out out

A few years ago I was suffering through hard times in yet another New England winter when out of the blue (so to speak) came an envelope from Japan... where I didn't think I knew anyone. Turned out to be an elegant fish from Mr. Bull, sent by the one, the only madamjujujive for some favor she'd decided I had done for her.

Things began looking up almost immediately after that... and the fish still hangs here at my desk next to the screen as I type this.
posted by LeLiLo at 8:12 AM on February 28

I have ordered several of woodblock's prints as gifts for friends, and they have all loved them.

Finally I got two for myself, and they live in a place of honor in my tiny tabletop succulent garden under my little bay window.

One is the fish that LeLiLo mentions. People always do a double take when seeing it for the first time. In the golden hour before sunset light hits the print almost horizontally from the side. At first glance it looks like something printed off the internet, but then as the viewer moves to look at the other little treasures on the table, the waves in the water suddenly move and the fish is jumping out of the paper.

I encourage everyone who likes to have beautiful things to look at to order a print or two.
posted by Doroteo Arango II at 11:11 AM on February 28 [2 favorites]