Some of the things that we use every day seem to have

been always around and one can't ever imagine having to

do without, I am talking about something we are so used to,

you see everywhere, it is inexpensive, it ranges in uses

from the everyday mundane functions to the sublime realms

of art, it has, arguably, propelled the human civilisation to

modern times through the preservation and distribution of

knowledge across the centuries. Have you guessed what 

am I on about yet ?  Paper.....yes paper.

 

That essential product that we use and abuse! I bet you

have never thought about it, at any time, just like myself,

I just use it, until I came across this very interesting site,

dedicated to the art of papermaking, by a pure chance. 

The ancient art and the craft of papermaking is apparently

alive and well in Australia and many other parts of the world. 

The mass produced, machine made paper is a very large,

technical and advanced industry and doesn't belong in the

world of art at all, so let us leave it aside, shall we, and we'll

concentrate on the time honoured craft of the handmade

paper and those wonderful and masterly skills passed to the

papermaking artists of today.

 

        Gail Stiffe, papermaker and bookbinder

     Hands on Paper  http://www.bluep.com/~stiffe

 

Perhaps a brief touch on the history of papermaking won't

go astray here. Papyrus is generally considered to be the

oldest ancestor of paper, it has grown in ancient Egypt and

been utilised to make a paper-like surface used for writing

and amazingly enough. lots of these old papyrus records

have survived til now and have been carefully preserved to

be studied in many museums and academic establishments

as we all know. Paper made from reconstituted plant fibres

didn't appear til about 105 AD, said to have originated in

China by master Ts'ai Lun who has experimented to break

plants fibres by beating them then re-forming them to make

a fine web that resembles a sheet of paper. Many materials

were used for that purpose including old nets and rags, and

the whole thing went under a lot of development and refining.

 

Arabs acquired these papermaking methods from Chinese

prisoners captured in the 8th century. The knowledge then

passed on to the Moors who is thought to make more rapid

progress in the craft and have established several mills to

manufacture paper due to the huge demand in that period.

Papermaking reached Spain during the Moors' occupation,

then gradually proliferated to the rest of Europe and by the

11th century, paper was made in many parts of Europe and

continued to be developed and improved to reach a high

degree of sophistication, of course it has been made by

hand still. First machine to produce a continuous web of

paper (ie a roll) was built in 1799, Technology takes over

and papermaking becomes mechanised, standardised and

gradually has been established as the monstrous industry

that we know today.

 

 That brings us to the website and the paper artist that I

 have discovered, as I have mentioned, by pure chance.

Gail Stiffe, is the papermaker that I am writing to you about.

She comes across as someone who is passionate about

her craft and you can see her vision crystallised in all the

beautiful paper that she makes. She sums it all up in one

sentence saying : " My interest began as a hobby but has

expanded to a way of life."  Started in 1984 and have been

making cards from recycled paper without any contact with

other paper artists til 1987. Soon after the "papermakers

of Victoria" was formed, and she has been on the committee

and exhibited with the group's yearly shows ever since, also

has had many solo exhibition with the first one in Melbourne

in July 1997. I am amazed at the high degree of versatility

that is exhibited by this medium, It can be cast, manipulated,

sewn and painted with. It can be used for books, lamps,

sculptures and wall art even quilts, to quote Gail.

 

I am especially intrigued by  "pulp painting", which is one of

Gail's  main interests and I could see her skill in transforming

paper pulp into real art, producing fascinating effects that

lend themselves to the traditional fine art media, with many

works of suggestive abstract themes that carry you into a

dreamy world of subtle colour and form.

One aspect of Gail's innovative techniques is the use of

photos integrated in the pulp painting, which works very well

as to focussing the eye of the viewer on an area in a close

up, contrasting with the total view presented. Another area

that seems of great interest to Gail is book making, with a

variety of bindings and paper, made using different materials

and techniques in all shapes and sizes....all confirming my

opinion as to her artistic ability, application and dedication

to her craft.

 

 Other exotic aspects of the papermaking craft is presented

on the website, like vegetable papyrus made from zucchini

or carrot slices and even a vegetable papyrus made out of

steamed turnips!  Another fascinating tale, I discovered

through Gail's site is presented on the linked  sister site

"Papermakers of Victoria", is the careful and very detailed

documentation of the workshop held by the renowned

papermaker Asao Shimura when he visited Australia, it must

have been a treat for all those who have attended this long

awaited workshop! 

 

The site has two versions and contains lots of information

about the various aspects of papermaking and book making

and binding it has also information regarding the activities of

the "Papermakers of Victoria". It is noteworthy that the site

forms a kind of a hub in a webring that contains other 6 sites

relating to the craft of papermaking, and that is indicative of

the active part that Gail plays in that wonderful field. The site

could do however with a bit of professional design advice, as

it has no systematic layout theme  with the pages rather very

big and should be broken down to more digestible pieces.

  The positive in this site is much, much greater than a few

minor negative points. So if you want to explore this virtual

treasure trove head for  Hands on Paper at : 

http://www.bluep.com/~stiffe

 Enjoy the fabulous images and all the information in it, and

if it happens to capture your imagination,  well, you can have

a go and  join in as well!