Sumi-e, the Japanese word for black ink painting, developed together with brush calligraphy in China over 2000 years ago. When the art came to Japan, artists developed their own style and aesthetics that are now known as sumi-e.
No matter the style of East Asian Brush painting they all use the same four tools, or treasures: ink stick, ink stone, brush, and paper. Ink is made by adding water to the ink stone and rubbing the ink stick on the stone until the desired consistency is reached. Traditional brushes are hand made with brown, white, or mixed hair. Finally paper, rice paper is a catch-all for many types of Asian papers made of various materials such as cotton, silk, and mulberry.