Paper on the Grid

Paper on the Grid

© Bethany Bickley

The Sunday Paper #312
May 17, 2020

Paper of the Week: On the Grid


I have always been enamored by grids, and I have to give credit to Lynn Amlie (a coworker at Dieu Donné Paper Mill in the mid-90’s) for this ingenious attachment idea. Lynn visited the Noguchi Museum and Sculpture Garden in Long Island City – one of my favorite spots in NYC – and was inspired to staple small squares of paper together to create a window shade in her apartment. It took my breath away, and the image of her piece has stuck in my mind ever since. As I prepare to launch my next online class Paper + Light, I thought of that piece and decided to create my own. I applied konnyaku to a selection of Japanese papers from Washi Arts for this piece. This view is unlit, but it looks lovely with light filtering through it.

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In the Studio:

Samples created years ago in preparation for my book Paper Illuminated. How to make paper translucent: punch, pierce, layer, embed, apply beeswax and more!


Another grid! As I put the finishing touches on my online class Paper + Light, I’m thinking a lot about how to make paper translucent (in addition to looking at papers that are inherently so). This is something we’ll be exploring in class, and here’s your last chance to fill out my short survey and receive a $10 coupon when registration opens next week.

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Paper Tidbits:

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Béatrice Coron installed this exhibition at the New York Historical Society just before Covid-19 shut things down in NYC, so nobody has been able to see it in person! She created an artist’s book which documents a site-specific installation for exhibition In Profile: A Look at Silhouettes. Each signed and numbered copy in the edition of 100 includes a negative of the original papercut. Get your copy here!

I’m promoting artists here on the blog to help them replace some of their income during the pandemic. Please reach out if you have a paper product to sell that you think my readers will enjoy.
I love this! An eighth-grade teacher in Delaware tasked her remote students with creating art on or from empty toilet paper or paper towel rolls. This is Alessandra Broussard‘s work, and she took this intriguing photograph as well.

Alessandra Broussard’s paper roll art creations demonstrate her skilled craftsmanship and eye for detail.


This white paper floral construction, a collaborative piece by artists Nikki Nye and Amy Flurry, is mounted to a wall in what will serve as a ‘VIP’ space in the open floor plan of the rooftop lounge at the DoubleTree Hilton in downtown Tallahassee, FL. Hundreds of handcrafted flowers, leaves and blades are arranged in a single, continuous horizontal paper sculpture.

Book art on the beach! Check out the work of Bethany Bickley as seen on Colossal this week.

© Bethany Bickley


Hyperallergic is doing a series in which artists send in a photo and a description of their workspace and reflect on how the pandemic has changed their studio space and/or if they are focusing on particular projects while quarantining. The first one mentioned in this issues – Carol Es – is making art out of paper bags.

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The News from Here:
My mother’s facility tested everyone again this week, and they found no new cases of covid-19, hooray! They will test again next week to make sure they have a firm handle on the situation, since it has only been about 10 days since the initial cases were reported (those with the virus have been isolated). Thanks to those of you who sent notes of concern!
I am knitting most evenings, slowly but surely making progress on this Montana Mountain Cowl designed by Andrea Mowry. I’m looking forward to when I can go back into the shop and knit with others on Saturday mornings.
Stay well my friends.

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Featured this week in my Studio shop:
 
Alpha, Beta, …, The Paper Year (now 1/2 price), The Papermaker’s Companion and The Papermaker’s Studio Guide.
The Paper Year

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1 Comment

  1. Molly Millman says:

    Helen,
    Love your knitting piece! I’ve been looking for a grid pattern to make my granddaughter a car seat afghan. Is this pattern published somewhere that I might find it?
    Thanks,
    Molly

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