GMK Shanshui R2 山水二 - Black-on-WhiteA different path.
The second round of GMK Shanshui 山水 is in the works, in the much requested black-on-white colorway. While the first round was a nod to the tranquil nighttime scenes of the majestic Li River in South China, this round evokes the bright, soft day, the stark contrast of ink on paper, and the art of
shanshuihua itself, the Chinese style of ink painting perfectly suited to capture the layered depth of the South China Karst, the ghostly mists, and the smooth rush of the water. Literally “mountain-water-painting” in the Chinese, these words are immortalized in the local slogan of this stretch of the Lijiang between Guilin and Yangshuo: 山水甲天下, “the best landscapes under heaven.”
About the setGMK Shanshui R2 山水二 is a black-on-white Cherry profile keycap set designed to capture both the enduring shanshui images of the Lijiang and the essence of the uniquely Chinese artform of shanshuihua, practiced by artists in China and around the world. Designed by Grundlemere of Fort Stevens Mercantile, conceived and rendered by NathanAlphaMan of Alpha Design.
Base keys are molded in crisp GMK stock WS1, with legends rendered in CR black, matching existing BoW sets and kits, and compatible with other monochrome Cherry profile keys including GMK Shanshui R1. The base kit offers sublegends in Cangjie, while modifiers are rendered in both Simplified and Traditional Chinese + icons—a second act for the first GMK legends in true Chinese characters.
Complete the GMK Shanshui R2 Interest Check form to make this set a realitySee a full gallery of board and scene rendersFollow me on IG @fort_stevens for photos and project updates, and feel free to reach out on Discord at grundlemere#1126 with questions or to say hello. New:
join my Discord server for updates!
UpdatesVendorsTBD, but with sufficient interest in the set, expect this to run with the same vendors who carried GMK Shanshui R1
KitsXuan Paper 宣纸: the Simplified Chinese base kit
The Simplified Chinese base kit offers sublegends in the Cangjie Chinese typing system, while modifiers are rendered in Simplified Chinese + icons—a reprise of the first GMK legends in true Chinese characters. Designed to cover a wide range of layouts. Included numpad is rendered in Chinese financial numerals as monolegends. Alphas include basic special Chinese punctuation sublegends.
Old Hand 旧文: the Traditional Chinese base kit
The Traditional Chinese base kit offers sublegends in the Cangjie Chinese typing system, while modifiers are rendered in Traditional Chinese + icons—a reprise of the first GMK legends in true Chinese characters. Designed to cover a wide range of layouts. Included numpad is rendered in Chinese financial numerals as monolegends. Alphas include basic special Chinese punctuation sublegends.
Hanging Scroll 条幅: the Cangjie monolegend alphas kit
A complete alphanumeric kit with Cangjie Chinese character monolegends, and duplicate modifiers and spacebars to assist base kit buyers in covering a second board if desired. Includes both Simplified and Traditional Chinese character alpha supplements and east/south/west/north Chinese character arrow keys. Recommended for compatibility with GMK BoW, Bleached, Minimal, and other monochrome sets.
Riverflow 水流: the novelties kit
Novelties feature images, real and imagined, of the Li River between Guilin and Yangshuo, China, in Guangxi Province amid the world-famous South China Karst geologic formations. Novelty icons include:
- Sunrise scenes of the local mountain and river landscape (shanshui),
- the famous Moon Hill (a karst mountain with an enormous hole through the base, famed for rock climbing),
- the fishing cormorant,
- the ubiquitous “phoenix tail” bamboo that lines the banks of the Lijiang,
- the traditional lantern hung on the eaves of the winding streets of Yangshuo,
- a vignette of local South China architecture,
- alternate WoB Esc/Enter keys in TC and SC.
White Space 空白: the spacebars kit
Includes non-traditional spacebars and spacekeys, as well as variant CR black bars for a distinctive touch.
CollaborationsOur list from last time was staggering!
Digital Carpentry for custom branded rare wood wrist rests
Luxe Cables for a set-matched aviator cable
RAMA WORKS for metal artisan keycaps
Salvun for artisan keycaps in bronze
Latrialum for collab artisan keycaps in resin
DE∆Gcaps for a collab artisan keycap in resin
Sodie Caps for collab artisan keycaps in resin
Destroyer Caps for collab artisan keycaps in resin
Bludgeoned Kaps for collab artisan keycaps in resin
Rascal Caps for collab artisan keycaps in resin
Frumpzkeys for collab artisan keycaps in resin
Fraktal Kaps for collab artisan keycaps in resin
Rejeck Kaps for collab artisan keycaps in resin
Froue Loop for a collab multimedia artisan keycap
If you’re a maker or artisan, I’d love to work with you to develop an exclusive collaboration for GMK Shanshui or a future set. Please get in touch!
DeskmatsTBD, but we may do a rerun of the deskmats from Shanshui R1
Rafts 钓鱼筏 deskmat: An ink painting of traditional fishing rafts afloat on the Li River beneath the leaning phoenix tail bamboo, emblazoned with the Shanshui logo chop at bottom left. Based on artwork by Baoyan.
Karst 岩溶 deskmat: an ink painting of the South China Karst seen through the mist with the inscription, "best scenery under heaven" (山水甲天下), an unofficial local slogan of the Li River area. No seal for users who prefer a completely monochrome look. Based on artwork by Elina Li.
Sharing the Cangjie legendsDesigners interested in using the Chinese-language legends we’ve created are welcome and encouraged to reach out for design files to use in their renders, free of charge.
This is likely my last set design to use Chinese character legends—I don’t want to get typecast as the Chinese keycap guy! But I hope that other designers will take up the mantle and use these legends to produce beautiful work, as others have with Hiragana and Hangul legend designs.
AcknowledgementsThis design goes to the great people of China, the Chinese-speaking world, and the Chinese diaspora, who contribute so much to our community through their creativity, passion, knowledge, and work. You changed my life and I’ll never be the same. Also,
NathanAlphaMan for the incredible collaborative partnership, the initial idea to do Houhai as a WoB set, the gorgeous renders, and the critical feedback
Michael at Digital Carpentry, for being my first partner, my biggest sounding board, and my unrelenting critic
Exclusive, for the cultural translation help and his friendship
Alex, for the kernel of the idea of what Shanshui would become
Upas, for taking a chance on this set, and his important advice
Louis, for his kindness, his passion for my work, and his partnership
Jae, for his honesty and sense, and for the use of his beautiful J-01 and J-02 models
LBaron and the S+R team, for making their gorgeous Iron165 and Iron180 models available
A.Jakkkke for helping me make this set as good as it can be.
Thanks for reading this far and thank you for your feedback.
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