I have a fond recollection of this paper. I think it must be one of the first papers that I owned; perhaps purchased on a brief trip to Japan in 1989. I recognized it immediately in Paper Connection International‘s catalog, and I couldn’t resist getting a piece. The company, along with several other companies listed here, have generously donated papers for this project.

#13

© 2013 Helen Hiebert, 100 x 100 Paper Weavings # 13, 4″ x 12″, $100

I wove the paper, Yuzen/grey wheels, with a piece of translucent abaca.

#14

© 2013 Helen Hiebert, 100 x 100 Paper Weavings #14, 10″ x 8″, SOLD

Here is another Yuzen paper from Paper Connection International. There are a few companies that specialize in importing papers from Japan and this is one of them.

Do you ever wonder if you are a leader or a follower? I’d have to say that I followed the paper in this particular weaving of the Yuzen coral/blue waves and a piece of cooked kozo paper (which I pounded, stretched and dried). The two papers seemed right for each other, and the Yuzen paper “told me” where to make the cuts. This could be such a different weaving if you had done it. Here’s a peak at the two papers before they were woven.

#15

© 2013 Helen Hiebert, 100 x 100 Paper Weavings #15, 10″ x 8″, $100

Elephant Hide is one of my favorite papers. It folds well, is supple and sturdy, and comes in a range of muted colors. It isn’t made anymore (was fabricated in Germany) but Talas still carries it (while supplies last). I purchased the yellow/green paper from Wet Paint in St. Paul, MN. I like this detail of the weaving:

#16

© 2013 Helen Hiebert, 100 x 100 Paper Weavings #16, 10″ x 8″, Sold

Okay, you are probably wondering about the title of this blog post. It is the title of an awesome book, Her Fearful Symmetry, by Audrey Niffenegger, about twin girls, a cemetery and ghosts (among other things). When I found the background paper in my drawer, I couldn’t stop seeing a portal in the trees. The portal is made from Cave Paper’s infamous Layered Indigo Day, which I wove into a print I made when I co-taught class at Penland with alternative photography whiz Alyssa Salomon. This is a cyanotype on handmade pigmented purple cotton paper.

BTW, Niffenegger also wrote The Time Traveler’s Wife, which features a hand papermaker as the heroine.

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