Bamboo
Drawing bamboo in four strokes
One stem, one joint, two leaves: how four strokes of black ink make a stalk of bamboo.
I paint with black ink and a brush every day
I’m Aiko. I paint bamboo, mountains and fruit in black ink, and I sell practice sheets, stroke guides and prints, plus two video courses.
Latest posts
PracticeGrinding ink before I paint
Why I grind a little ink each morning, how long it takes and what to look for in the colour.
BambooWhat I see in a bamboo grove
Standing in a grove at dawn and noticing which stems are dark, which are pale and where the light falls.
MountainsMist and mountains in light ink
Painting a ridge with water and a little grey ink, and leaving the white paper as the mist.
About me
I paint with black ink and a brush on thin paper, in a small house in the hills, mostly on the veranda in the morning. I grind a little ink every day and paint one page before I do anything else. I started with a single brush and a cheap stick of ink, and I still paint with very little.
I write a post every Wednesday, and most of them are about practice: one subject, one stroke, one thing to try. What I sell is the part you can use: practice sheets for bamboo, mountains and fruit, a stroke guide, a brush care guide, a printable set of paintings, a starter bundle and two video courses, one for beginners and one for three subjects. I do not take commissions. I teach you to paint your own.
