Jacques Herbin - Shogun

[namrehsnoom]

Jacques Herbin – Shogun

 

La Société Herbin, Maître Cirier à Paris, was established in 1670. This makes J. Herbin probably the oldest name among European ink makers. Today, Herbin produces a range of beautiful fountain pen and calligraphy inks, writing instruments, gift sets and accessories. Herbin inks are made in France, and the finishing touches on the bottles are still done by hand in Paris.

 

Jacques Herbin Shogun by Kenzo Takada is part of the "Creations d'Artistes" fountain pen ink collection, fruit of a close collaboration between renowned artists and Herbin. Each unique shade in this collection honors a different personality, drawing from the sensitivity and soul of the artist who inspired it. This ink comes in a 50 ml glass bottle at about 23.50 EUR (taxes included).

 

Shogun is a black ink at heart, which takes on a brown-patina tone due to the red and gold glitter it contains. The resulting hue is reminiscent of certain armours from the Shogun era, for which Kenzo Takada held a fine appreciation. For this review, I will ignore the glitter component, and take a closer look at the base ink. I know that many people will discard black inks as boring, but they are wrong! This one in particular is full of character and complexity, and a joy to use for both writing and drawing.

 

While writing, this Jacques Herbin ink lays down a brownish-black line, that quickly dries to a lovely textured black with soft and elegant shading. Saturation is nicely executed with a fairly broad range, going from medium grey to black. This translates to great aesthetics in the shading department, making the ink look elegant and sophisticated on the page. Being a “samurai ink”, it’s no surprise that it works best with katana-nibs … i.e. stub nibs which swing broadly and deliver a fine cut. Seriously, this ink really shines when using it in a pen with an italic nib. It makes the ink pop from the page, exhibiting great personality.

 

On the smudge test – rubbing text with a moist Q-tip cotton swab – there was very little smearing. Water resistance is quite good too: some of the dyes wash away, but you are left with a perfectly readable grey-black image of your writing. This is clearly visible in the chromatography: the bottom part shows that a lot of ink remains well-attached to the paper.

 

The chroma also excels at showing Shogun’s inherent complexity: there’s a lot going on beneath the surface… I see blue and purple and yellow components, that easily surface when using this Jacques Herbin ink for drawing. 

The ink behaved really well on all my test papers, both white and cream. With lower-quality paper there is some bleed-through, but that is to be expected. But even on Moleskine, you don’t get any visible feathering. Overall, an excellent writing ink. I’ve tested the ink on a wide variety of paper – from crappy Moleskine to high-end Tomoe River. On each scrap of paper I show you:

• An ink swab, made with a cotton Q-tip
• 1-2-3 pass swab, to show increasing saturation
• An ink scribble made with a Lamy Safari M-nib fountain pen
• The name of the paper used, written with a Lamy Safari B-nib
• A small text sample, written with the Lamy M-nib
• The source of the quote, written with a Pelikan M600 with M-nib
• Drying times of the ink on the paper (with the M-nib Safari)

 

The writing samples above are photos, which seem to provide the most accuracy in capturing the colour of this ink. Below you’ll find a scan of some writing samples: here the contrast is a bit too harsh, and fails to capture the softness of the shading.

 

Below you can find some enlarged details of writing samples. It shows the crispness of the lines and the soft shading really well. With Moleskine, you can detect a tiny bit of feathering, but that’s almost invisible on a normal scale. 

 

Writing with different nib sizes
The scan below shows the effect of nib sizes on the writing. All samples were written with a Lamy Safari, which is typically a dry pen. I also added some visiting pens, with a combination of nib sizes. It’s clear that Shogun can handle the complete nib range with ease. I especially like the ink when paired with the italic nibs – you get a crispness and elegance that fits the samurai theme.

 

Related inks
To allow for a good comparison with related inks, I employ my nine-grid format, with the currently reviewed ink at the center. Each grid cell shows the name of the ink, a saturation sample, a 1-2-3 swab and a water resistance test – all in a very compact format. As you can see, I inadvertently switched the positions of Shogun and Noir Abyssal – which I only noticed while writing this review text. They look nearly identical… maybe Noir Abyssal is a touch more black. Makes me wonder whether Shogun is identical to Noir Abyssal with added glitter? 

 

Inkxperiment – Flying Machines II
As a personal challenge, I try to create interesting drawings using only the ink I’m reviewing. With these monochromatic pieces, I get to explore all the colour-range nuances that are present in the ink. This is always my favourite part of the review: experimenting with the ink, and trying to be creative… pure quality time!

I’ve been reading some steampunk novels lately, with complex mechanical machines, gears and levers and Babbage engines. And flying airships! That’s where the inspiration for this inkxperiment comes from. A flying machine manoeuvering its way to the landing bay. 

 

For this drawing I used an A4 piece of HP photo paper, which is my favourite medium for doing inkxperiments. The photo paper really brings out the best from the ink. I first created the background with a dish-washing sponge dipped in heavily water-diluted ink. Here the ink really shows its under-the-surface purple and yellow tones. The yellow components are particularly visible in the mountain range.  I then painted in the airship, with its landing cables, and the small crowd moving it into position for docking. The resulting piece gives you a good idea of the contrast range that can be coaxed out of this Jacques Herbin black. Just lovely!

Inkxpired – computational art
I love experimenting with pen/ink/paper, and have added another layer as part of the hobby. I’m exploring computational art, inspired by the ink drawings I do during ink reviews. Another fun offshoot of the hobby… and all that starting with a few drops of dye-coloured water on paper.

 

I started by overexposing the picture, creating a bit more texture in the sky. I then used a colour filter, and finally a composition filter to arrive at the end result. 

 

Conclusion
Jacques Herbin Shogun pleasantly surprised me. Not only is it a technically solid ink, but it’s also a beautiful one for both writing and drawing. Elegant. Sophisticated. Shogun dominates the page with its presence: a true samurai. Never let it be said that black inks are boring!

Technical test results on Rhodia N° 16 notepad paper, written with Lamy Safari, M-nib

 

 

Backside of writing samples on different paper types

 

Doodle
While creating the inkxperiment drawing, I used a small piece of photo paper to test saturation of water/ink combinations. There was not much I could coax out of it, so I was ready to throw it away. Just then, I thought: let’s see how it reacts with bleach. Woah! What the heck! This Shogun ink’s reaction to bleach is utterly amazing. You get a golden-glowing result that is simply astounding. With just a few strokes of the dip pen, the bleach transformed a piece of ready-for-the-dustbin trash into a dynamic ghostwalker scene.

 

 

[lapis]

Most excellent ink review as always here! Thanks again!!

Above all your list of comparative shots (again, as usual). I/we just can't help asking myself/ourselves (and others) "What's that in that black ink, that isn't black?

[Mechanical]

Thanks, as always, for this terrific review. 

 

I like this kind of ink and I rarely find two black inks to really be identically, the same.  This one has great shading and nuance.

 

I hesitate only because it is a shimmer ink...

 

 

 

[LizEF]

Great review, @namrehsnoom.  Black inks still aren't for me, but it amazing just how different they appear when you put them next to each other!  And as always, I love the drawings, including today's extra bleach experiment - perfect for Halloween!  

 

Thank you for all your hard work!  

[inkstainedruth]

@namrehsnoom -- Thanks again for the comprehensive review.  I bought a bottle of this when it first came out, but have never opened the package (I've become less enamored of shimmer inks after discovering that the shimmer particles don't stay on the page when the ink dries -- and after breaking the piston on what I think was a Pelikan M100 with a 1 mm stub using the original version of J Herbin 1670 Rouge Hematite (with the big gold flakes).  

But now, after seeing your review, I really should open it up at some point (maybe try it in the cheap Guanleming pen with the fude nib... ).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[yazeh]

Wow, what a review , where to begin?

 

I have come to appreciate dark grey inks, because of their dynamic rang. It clearly shows in your fantastic drawing, from the abyssal black "calligraphic" flourishes in the flying contraption ( couldn't help it ), the trees, and the landing dock to the light grey nuances of the sky and the bluish tinges on the land.  The bleach reaction has a benign spiritual feel to it. But @LizEF is more versed in spooky halloween, that I am.

 

I love how you explore the ink with the of blade. Very creative. 

 

Looking forward to a shootout between Noir Abyssal and Shogun.

 

Thanks for sharing your creativity on this Sunday. 🙏🙏🙏

 

 

[taimdala]

Whoa .....

I have to get me a bottle of this. Gosh, this is a pretty ink.

[InesF]

Thank you, @namrehsnoom, for this ink review and for your always entertaining ink-experiments! 

I love both, the drawing as well as the doodle.

 

I own this ink and use it quite often, but not for the black colour. It does outstandingly well in the PilotParallel pen for calligraphy.

[knarflj]

I'm not normally interested in either black or shimmer inks, but after this review I'm very tempted to at least try a sample.  Thank you for the thorough review.  I love both the airship and the bleachy ghosts!

[lamarax]

Hmm, this ink looks quite... KENZO. I guess he left his spirit with whoever manages the brand^* (be it perfumes, clothes, or... inks)  

 

 

 

*(well, it's LVMH, as expected...)

[PAKMAN]

Very through review!  Iro Shogun ink is a gray, would you say that this is more gray or black?