Papermaking at Penland: Getting serious: Weeks 4

In weeks 4 and 5 of the eight week concentration, we learned to work with kozo ( fiber from the inner bark of a mulberry tree) and abaca (fiber from the leaf stalk of a banana tree).

Kozo can be processed using a Holland beater (a water-filled tub with blades that macerate the fiber as it moves around). It can also be beaten by hand. A good source if you'd like to know more is The Papermaker's Companion by Helen Hiebert.

Below, Melissa demonstrates how to form sheets using an eastern mould and deckle (called a sugeta) for multi-dip sheet formation that results in thin, strong and translucent sheets. In the second image, she demonstrates how to remove the su (screen) from the sheet after separating it from the keta (hinged frame).

Jenna (above) beats dyed kozo by hand.

These are Melissa's examples of Japanese stab bindings and a case to hold the books. She used these to demonstrate the project, which all of us completed in class.

Below are Melissa's examples of kozo "bark," hand formed with intentional holes, and below that a hand made and dyed sculptural book. The pages rustle nicely.

Here's Melissa demonstrating for a group of students led by a volunteer tour guide. Instructors are encouraged to involve visitors, if only briefly, in whatever is going on in class. This makes for exciting tours, and they take place regularly. None of us minded the interruptions, and students are usually pretty interested (bundled up, in this case, because in mid April we still had very chilly days).

In weeks 5 and 6 we also learned how to mold and cast with paper. Some fibers (cotton) shrink little and readily conform to small indentations. Abaca becomes quite tough and is known for shrinking around an armature and either stretching to its confines or warping the form if it is malleable enough. Below: heads made by pressing different kinds of pulp into a plaster mold, demonstrating degree to which each kind retains features.

The two photos here (left and below) are of Melissa demonstrating how to fill a mold and how to cast onto an armature (in this case, an egg)

The three photos above show Melissa at work on her martini glasses. The top one is of kozo "bark" wrapped around a plastic bottle. It looks either lacey or dessicated--take your pick (that's the fascination of Melissa's work). The second is of abaca stretched around a bamboo frame. Why martini glasses, you might ask? For a Penland party, of course.

Finally, here are some examples of work on our desks from weeks 4-6:

Amanda (a core student on scholarship at Penland for two years, based on her promising work) stacking pages for coptic binding. She's aiming for something 6 feet tall, and will probably get there.