Stephanie Peek

Back Roads to Far Places After Basho

This Japanese hand scroll with nine poems by Lawrence Ferlinghetti is accompanied by 10 spit bite etchings by San Francisco artist Stephanie Peek. The poems, inspired by Haiku poet Massou Basho, were set and letterpress printed by Alan Hilesheim at Digger Pine Press in Berkeley. Paul Mullowney at Tokugenji Zen temple in Nara, Japan printed the etchings. The paper is hand-dyed Yoshino Kizuki and the entire piece is mounted with gold and silk brocade borders by master craftsman Shasaku Yoshimura in Ouda, Japan. The scroll resembles the traditional Japanese format except that it reads from left to right.

Press: Tokugenji Press
Date: 2003
Number and Edition: 8 of 10
Size: 13” x 91”