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Cards for the Yijing
This is a 64 cards deck inspired by the hexagrams, symbols from the ancient Chinese book-oracle Yijing (better known as I Ching). The cards were created via woodblock printmaking technique, mainly inspired by the process of mokuhanga (Japanese printmaking).
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The Yijing is a collection of texts that have built upon each other for at least 3000 years. Instead of reading it beggining to end, one is supposed to consult the Yijing with a question, either about endeavours, situations, relationships, about life. To consult it, you flip 3 coins 6 times and the result will point to one of the 64 hexagrams, represented by 6 stacked lines which are either solid lines (continuous) or yielding lines (interrupted). The hexagrams and the text that accompany it speak of a circumstance, of a position towards a situation, of moments of excess and lack, stillness and movement, proximity and distance, tension and relaxation. (rec reading)
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Preparation
Early drafts of the cards and studies
Final design of the cards. Ink on 180g paper.
Transferring the image by gluing rice paper with the design onto the wooblock(Cedrela fissilis) and then peeling the paper off.
Carving
Each line is defined with the knife gauge. After all the surroundings of the shapes were removed, the excess wood is carved away with an U gauge and then a straight gauge.
Carved and cleaned blocks
Finally all 16 blocks carved and ready for printing
Here is how they look like after printing a small series
Printing
The woodblock receives a small ammount of sumi ink and nori paste (rice paste), they are mixed and spread accross the surface with a large brush. The softened paper is positioned at the L register marks at the bottom right corner and then pressed with the use of a baren.
The design of the cards is based on the lines of the hexagrams. Each image was divided in six horizontal areas that either predominantly black or white, corresponding to its yielding(yin) and solid(yang) lines respectively.
This way, the cards function, as with the hexagrams, as a single structured piece that can be combined in many ways and studied by its similarities and differences in the visual field along with the text.
Here are some possible spreads that aid this perception.
Building up of solid and yielding lines
Opening from the center
Hexagrams with only one solid or yielding line, embraced by hexagrams 01 and 02 (all yang and all yin)
Left: Opposing and mirrored hexagrams. Right: Receptive(02) over Thunder(51) makes Return(24).
Doubled trigrams hexagrams. Clockwise from left: Water, Thunder, Receptive, Lake, Fire, Wind, Creative, Mountain.
