Paper is a very common canvas for art, but can paper become the medium itself?
Paper-making is an ancient art, that has become commercialized in the modern world and is responsible for much of the rainforest destruction. When printer paper, or other high grade paper is created, it is made out of raw pulp, straight from trees. The pulp is then bleached beyond recognition and sifted then pressed into the paper that we recognize. As a printmaker that uses a LOT of paper, I began to wonder if there was a better way to reduce my paper footprint when looking at the trashcan full of paper scraps.
Paper is a living, breathing medium that does not conform to one size, shape or color; each sheet that I pull has a unique pattern, border, and density. To make the pulp, I emptied the scraps bin and blended different colors and materials together to make unique pulps for every edition of paper that I create. Within the pulp I mix herbs, spices, roots, seeds, cloth fibers, shredded money and more to create spells for everything from prosperity to exorcism. The process of paper making started as a pure experiment, but gradually became a way of life.
With this paper I create journals, prints and sculptures.
