Uchigumo / kumo-gami (“cloud paper”) — research in Japan and the United States, 2019-Present
The oldest form of decorative papermaking in Japan, dating back to the Heian period
Materials: Japanese gampi (harvested from the mountains of Fukui Prefecture by the artist and a crew of papermakers), Iowa-grown kozo, natural dyes (indigo, benibana, goldenrod, madder, others); sheets made in Iowa and dried on gingko boards
Tools: Handmade bamboo su and sha (screen w/mesh), beating sticks, vat, and other tools
Research and work published in the book Paper & Colour, in the essay, “A Choreography of Clouds” (2022); presented for the Rare Book School’s Andrew W. Mellon Society of Fellows in Critical Bibliography (2021) and the International Association of Hand Papermakers and Paper Artists (2021), among others.
