The Sunday Paper #464

June 11, 2023

In 2010, many of you crocheted strands of thread for Mother Tree, my first installation that engaged the community. Those strands first surrounded Mother Tree when she was exhibited at The Portland Building in Oregon; they traveled to several venues across the country (organized by some of you) and moved to Colorado where the installation spent a few years in storage. For the past two years, Mother Tree has been on loan to the Museum of Motherhood in St. Petersburg, Florida, while they raised funds to purchase the sculpture.

I am delighted to share the wonderful news that the museum reached their goal (special thanks to those of you who contributed) and Mother Tree is now in their permanent collection. I met the founder of MOM, Joy Rose, back in 2011 in NYC, when I first introduced her to  Mother Tree. Here’s an article about Joy Rose and her vision for the museum.

Each individual crocheted strand in this piece is poignant – sent to me with a sentiment about motherhood. Those words are a gift – many were written on cards that are with Mother Tree at the museum today – and they inspired me to twist the crocheted strands into various configurations when she was displayed throughout the years. You can see some photos and read more about the piece here.

–——————————————————————————————–––––––

Paper Year member Ramsay Teviotdale created these illuminated panels for “UUCA Celebrates Pride” at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington, Virginia. The panels are made from laser cut cardboard, tissue paper, and string, and the installation will be in place through June 2023, Pride month. Ramsay shared this work in progress in a monthly open studio session on zoom, so it was extra special to see it come to life!

The piece was designed specifically for the space, and plays with the ideas of sacred stained glass and mandalas, in a style suited for the architecture. It is placed in the main sanctuary of the Brutalist landmark church where the sun streams in brightly during services and seems to glow. The rainbow colors of the Pride movement provide a place for the eye to rest and the mind to ruminate. At night the interior sanctuary lighting illuminates the piece from behind, and it becomes a beacon of tolerance.

———————————————————————————————–––––––

Whoa! Scientists in China have developed a way to turn origami into wearable devices and soft robotics by coating it with liquid metal. The metal-coated paper can be folded and is enhanced by the added properties of metal, which give it a tunable stiffness as well as the ability to conduct heat and electricity.

Applications of the enhanced paper (A) Folding and unfolding behaviour based on a sheet of enhanced paper. (B) Combinability of separated enhanced paper units. The paper sheets can be easily organised into a chair-like or M shape. Image: Handout

———————————————————————————————–––––––

Karen Kuchel shared this piece over in The Paper Studio this past week. This is a project from my book, The Art of Papercraft : The Exploding Cube, designed by Bhavna Mehta, on page 192. Karen created these nightlights as party favors for her son’s birthday. How delightful!

———————————————————————————————–––––––

I featured the cardboard art of Giles Miller Studio in my book, Playing With Paper. He continues to seek out sustainable materials, using them in innovative ways. Check out his unique cardboard displays for the Stella McCartney store in London.

———————————————————————————————–––––––

Paper Tidbits

• Have you had a chance to listen to my interview with Peter Thomas on Paper Talk?
• I’ve created 21 videos about the papermaking process that I’ve been sharing weekly over on YouTube. Take a look! The latest one is about papermaking fibers.
• The deadline for entering Sustainability in Chaos, the 2023 Exhibition of North American Hand Papermakers, is June 15th. Submit your work! (Full disclosure, I’m one of the jurors).
• Uppercase Magazine’s new book, Rag & Pulp, featuring 42 profiles of people, companies and products, starts shipping in July.

———————————————————————————————–––––––

In the Studio

I made a video to give you a glimpse into my annual Red Cliff Paper Retreat. I always enjoy spending a week with a dozen like-minded creatives. You can join us!

———————————————————————————————––––––