All of my painting is done with sumi: an ink that I must hand grind from a solid stick immediately before painting. This is done by putting a puddle of water on a stone (called a suzuri) and rubbing the ink stick against the stone in the puddle. It does not require much pressure, but the longer I grind the ink the darker the shade of whatever color I am using. For a thicker paste of ink I can wet the tip of the stick and grind on a dry part of the stone.
The completion of larger pieces may require regrinding ink to complete the one piece. Even smaller multicolored pieces require grinding each color just before application. The sumi applies with a look similar to watercolor, but as soon as it hits the paper it is permanent! That's why I use sumi for my hand painted jewelry, so I can lacquer over it.
The object of sumi-e is to use very few brush strokes. Just enough to represent the subject or maybe a little bit more to convey the mood of the subject. This economy of style has led to sumi-e often being referred to as the haiku of painting; as its abbreviated form parallels that of the brief poem. The nature of sumi-e materials and techniques does not allow reworking or correcting mistakes, so imperfect paintings are destroyed. This results in a hidden effort behind the completed painting you get to see. One of the things that initially attracted me to sumi-e is the fact that you can still see the paper. It isn't virtually covered up as with other water media styles. This makes it a perfect compliment to my hand made paper.
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Sumi-e is traditionally done with the sumi ink discussed above, hand ground on a suzuri, applied to delicate papers (colloquially referred to as rice paper) with a bamboo handled brush. I only paint on my own hand made paper. I have a collection of ink sticks, including one set of 18 colored sumi sticks, and several suzuri stones; including white stones on which I grind my colored sticks. The white stones allow me to get just the tone of ink I want.
I believe the most important element in executing sumi-e is the selection of the brush. It must have enough soft hairs to hold the ink and enough stiff hairs to spring back to a point at the end of a brush stroke. My favorite was the Grumbacher 628 size 4 made in China; but it is no longer available. It had an attractive mottled bamboo handle to add to its magnificent performance. Another good brush is the Yasutomo #5501S. I routinely avoid brushes with red plastic inserts holding the hair. I also advise you to avoid the common small rolls of student grade paper, available in most art supply stores, in favor of the large sheets of higher quality.
A few galleries that carry my work.
Shows & Festivals where you can meet me and see my work.