This workshop is good for children and beginners and involves the use of torn or shredded paper. The important factor in using recycled paper is the choice of 'raw material'.
The quality of the paper used dictates the end result. For example, office photocopy paper is not as archival as cotton fibre, but is much more enduring than newspaper. Newspaper is ,however, ideal for childrens workshops and for casting. Avoid glossy magazines.
In this workshop I teach you how to choose your recycled papers, how to beat it to a pulp and how to form sheets. It's great fun! There is a choice of projects, including a stationary kit complete with envelopes, writing paper and folder, and a cameo photograph album, ideal for weddings, baby books and presents. Colour is your choice. You can learn to dye the paper pulp or to paint it with water colours.
ADVANCED CREATIVE
PAPERMAKING
For those with some basic knowledge , this workshop explores various surface treatments of your handmade paper. Embossing images into wet paper is taught using lino cuts and plaster moulds.
To create texture, objects such as small twigs, bones, plastic rings etc can be embedded between layers of paper and these images, in turn, can be painted and embellished. Painting with coloured pulp and screen printing are also taught. Anything goes!
This is my favourite workshop because it is bursting with colour and texture. A good project for these techniques would be a book cover, box lid or banner.
Image - five panels of a nine panel banner, each panel 1 metre x
0.3 metre. 1994.
CASTING
WORKSHOP
Paper pulp is such a malleable medium. It can be formed into thin sheets for paper or drained of water and squelched and squashed into all kinds of shapes. In other words it is perfect for casting, using moulds made from plaster or silicon.
Other great shapes can be made from many and varied sources. Again, this technique can be used in banners or murals - it's great for community projects. Many paper- making artists use this technique to create their sculptures and relief work.
This workshop is great for children and beginners. You need a lot of pulp. Good quality recycled paper, well blended is OK, as is newspaper. Cotton/abaca is archival but expensive, and recycled acid- free mount board well blended is very close to perfect.
Image - detail of Court Jester Screen. 1994.
barb troughear crowden - works in paper & paperclay raku
PO Box 440 Bega 2550 NSW Australia
0415273894
barbaracrowden@gmail.com
pulpaddictionpaper.com.au
© barb troughear crowden 2004