Blue with Red

Proof of his interest in and commitment to printing was Diebenkorn's wish to explore each of the available media. Along with fellow American artist printmakers Jasper Johns and Helen Frankenthaler, Diebenkorn was introduced to the Japanese tradition of woodblock printing through the close ties established between American and Japanese print studios. In 1987 Diebenkorn returned to Crown Point Press's studio in Kyoto to work with the ukiyo-e craftsmen. Blue with Red was the result of a close collaboration with the master carvers who translated the artist's preparatory drawing, painstakingly cutting the wood blocks by hand and then inking a separate block for printing each color. Blue with Red displays a boldly 'Japanized' interpretation of the shapes and streaks of Diebenkorn's drawing, a result which the artist found hugely successful.