How does ink change the print? A four-combination test with the same block

This exercise is drawn from the guide to choosing the right ink and paper in linocut and woodcut printmaking. The guide explores how Japanese and European papers interact differently with black ink and Payne’s Grey. This exercise makes that difference concrete. Ink is not just a transfer medium. The ink you choose — its colour, its body, its tone — changes the emotional register of the image. And the paper changes how that ink arrives. The interaction between ink and paper is where the image actually comes to rest.

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The exercise

You need one block you know well, two inks (black and Payne’s Grey, or black and any cooler tone you have), and two different papers — ideally one Japanese and one European. Print the same block four times, varying only the ink and paper combination: Print 1 — black ink, Japanese paper Print 2 — black ink, European paper Print 3 — Payne’s Grey (or cool tone), Japanese paper Print 4 — Payne’s Grey (or cool tone), European paper Keep everything else identical: same inking, same pressure, same method. Pull each print within the same session so the ink consistency doesn’t drift.

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What to look for

Lay all four prints side by side. Black on Japanese paper: the ink settles into the fibres. The black is precise and sharp, with a slight luminosity at the edges of marks. Black on European paper: stronger contrast, more graphic authority. The black sits more visibly on the surface. Solid areas feel denser. Payne’s Grey on Japanese paper: the coolness of the pigment integrates into the fibres. Tone breathes. Distance opens. The image softens into atmosphere. Payne’s Grey on European paper: cooler and more controlled than on Japanese. Still atmospheric, but with more structural clarity. The question: which combination feels most true to what this image is trying to say?

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What the exercise opens up

For the large-scale Reflected Ground prints — A1 and A2 works in the hare series — I use black ink on Fabriano Rosaspina 220 gsm. The scale requires the weight of the paper and the authority of the black. For smaller exploratory prints, I use Payne’s Grey on Japanese paper when the image is about atmosphere rather than statement. The exercise gave me language for a decision I had been making intuitively. Once I could see the four options side by side, the choice became deliberate rather than guessed.