Woodblock Printing

We invited Naoto Yamazoe, a graphic designer and woodblock printing artist of the Tokuriki Family’s Matsukyu Publishing Company in Kyoto, Japan. 

The Tokuriki Family has a long history of being official artists for the Nishi Honganji Temple in Kyoto, traced back as far as the Keicho era (1596-1615). Tomikichiro Tokuriki (1902-2000), the 12th generation, was one of the most highly respected woodblock artists of the twentieth century in Japan. Around 1945, Tomikichiro Tokuriki set up his own publishing company; called Matsukyu Publishing. 

Naoto Yamazoe, the head designer of the Tokuriki Family’s company, visited many historic sites and wineries in Sonoma. He created our woodblock designs for the communities using scenery from Sonoma.