Prayer

Last week, my San Jose State students started printing on our new Vandercook (we're calling her Hermes). The same day of the first student to use the press, I also had students from the Mills College Book Arts Program visit my studio to learn about papermaking.

Also on that same day: the United States dropped its largest non-nuclear bomb on Afghanistan.

I tried to say something like this that day, but it came out garbled: papermaking and printmaking have a long legacy of being part of resistance movements. It was not lost to me that on the same day a bomb was dropped, I introduced these processes to a new generation. I can only hope that by continued teaching of this craft, this legacy, and the fight therein, will continue.

This isn't just a blog post; it's a prayer.

Upcoming Papermaking Workshops - San Jose and Half Moon Bay for July!

Japanese Style Papermaking
Kitsune Arts Studio
415 Kelly Avenue, Half Moon Bay, CA
Sunday, July 17, 10 AM - 4 PM
Cost: $80
For more information, or to register for the class, please email me here.


Japanese-Style Papermaking
School of Visual Philosophy
425 Auzerais Ave. San Jose, CA
Saturday, July 23, 10 AM - 4 PM
Cost: $85, plus $15 for materials.
For more information, or to register for this class, please visit here.

In these workshops, students will be introduced to the process of making Japanese paper. Japanese paper, often incorrectly referred to as rice paper, is known for its great strength while appearing delicate and gossamer-thin. Students will learn the basics of preparing their own fiber, hand beating, and forming sheets in the traditional nagashizuki method. Students will take home wet sheets to dry at home with instructions. Please note – this technique involves a lot of water, and students will get wet. Please wear shoes and clothing that can get wet. Participants should also bring a roll of paper towels to carry this wet sheets home on.

Return to Half Moon Bay

This past weekend I was thrilled to return to Judy's Kitsune Community Studio and teach pulp painting again. I'm not sure if it's the weather, Half Moon Bay, or Judy herself (most likely) that makes every time I go there just magical.

Oddly enough, to add to the magic of the memory, some shmutz on the lens of my phone gave all my images from the day a slight halo effect.

Last time visited Judy's, her cat Winky decided to join the class. This time around, Tanuki, her other cat, spent a portion of the day supervising the class.

This class really took to the technique. Below is Yoko's paper.

Nancy picked up the painting part of method very naturally. Many of her pieces were portraits or figurative works.

Besides everyone making paper, a workshop at Judy's includes incredible food. I was introduced to HMB artichoke bread this trip, which is worth the drive "over the hill" just for that. I also learned that it is almost impossible to buy underwear in Half Moon Bay. So, artichoke bread, yes, underwear, only at the Walgreen's, apparently.

Making Paper at the Berkeley Botanical Gardens

I was fortunate to teach Papermaking from Plants last week at the Berkeley Botanical Garden, as part of their Fiber and Dye programming. For the class, I decided to prepare some fibers that grown locally, so participants could learn how to make paper from their very own gardens. I also invited participants to bring plants from home, and asked the garden for any cuttings they could spare.

One of the fibers I prepared was yucca - that's what's beating in Dulcinea above. It's from my yucca plant that I grew in Richmond - you can see it in the picture here - that I'd harvested and dried before we moved. Winnie had warned me that the fiber would foam in the beater, but I didn't realize how much it it would foam! Even dried, the fibers were full of saponins.

Below, the beaten fiber, still sudsy.

I posted a picture of the suds to Facebook, and I think some people found it pretty gross. However, I found the suds almost like a luxurious bubble bath, and I was so enchanted I decided to write about it for Mary's "Eat Your Words" zine.

Every time I do a class like this, the prep exhausts me and I wonder if its worth it. Then I teach the class, and watch how people are transformed by making plant matter into paper, and realize it totally is. I've been thinking about how making paper from local fibers connects people to place, and how paper from local plants has what I think of as hereness - the sense of the landscape in the very fibers.

Along with the yucca, I prepared New Zealand Flax (which really isn't flax, it's phormium), daylily, and corn husk, and during the class we coaked and blendered some pampas grass leaves. It was so, so , so great to teach people how to make paper from scratch from their own gardens.

We started out with everyone making a sheet of each of the fibers from the pure botanical, and then added a little abaca so that we didn't run out too soon.

It was a full class, with very enthusiastic participants. The garden also gave us some banana cuttings, which we didn't get to, but they let me take them home.

Below, Lisa experimented with incorporating fresh plant matter into her paper.

I had been pouring our waste paper onto the plants, and took the press outside to press, hoping the water would drain into the garden - but then was chagrined to learn that the plants were under controlled watering conditions for study. Oops.

We went through almost all the pulp, and I let Christine take the remainder home - she used it up right away.

We ended the workshop with the pampas grass paper - completing the cycle of plant to paper in a day. We didn't have enough for everyone to make a sheet of pure pampas, so it was a pampas grass-abaca mix. All of my prepared fibers has been dried, so the bright green of the fresh fiber excited the participants and felt to me like the grand finale of the workshop.

Tomorrow I return to Half Moon Bay to teach at Judy's again!

In other exciting news, I've been invited by the San Francisco Center for the Book to make a book for their 2015 Small Plates Imprint! I'm going to work with a variation on the flag book structure.

I was also selected for Creative Capital's "On Our Radar" program!

So you are thinking about art school...

As an art instructor, the first question parents ask me about any school or program is, “Will my child be able to get a job in the arts?” There isn’t clear-cut answer to this question – the arts are a broad field that requires more skills than just being able to draw well. Many artists have to invent their jobs, which requires a creative, innovative, and disciplined mindset. A colleague of mine has described an arts career as “hacking” into the world.

More than anything, an arts career requires being able to work harder than imaginable, and the study of art requires being curious and critical about everything and anything, not just visual art.

Outside of teaching, a career in the arts does not necessarily require an arts degree. However, it can be a huge stepping-stone and open doors faster than for someone without one. While thinking about this, I pooled my collective friends about what they wished they would have known in high school.

This list came from that discussion. It is a set of questions for students and parents in evaluating the value of an art school or university art program. I encourage students and parents to push for specific answers to these questions rather than vague assurances. In addition, many stressed that it is almost impossible for an eighteen-year-old to conceive of the weight and duration of time that college debt carries to someone in the arts, and stressed that avoiding debt is essential for individuals in the arts.

Questions:

1) Does the school or program require a portfolio? What types of artwork(s) are required for admission? How do they evaluate this portfolio in determining admission? Is it possible to see examples of portfolios of students who have been accepted?

2) What sort of financial aid is available? Are there need-based or merit based scholarships? Does the financial aid office assist in finding financial aid from outside of the institution?

3) How much should a student budget for supplies each semester? Students can borrow and share books for regular academic classes, but paint, clay, or computer programs can be more difficult to share, and this can be a surprise added expense for some students.

4) What sort of technology does the school provide for students? What technology are students required to purchase? Does the school have any programs that provide discounts on technology purchases to students?

5) What are the differences between applied arts (graphic design, fashion design, video game design, illustration, animation, etc.) and fine arts? What are the differences in career options between the two fields?

6) What sort of skills will a student learn that are applicable and marketable to possible non-art making jobs, such as carpentry, welding, web design, marketing, installation/art handling?

7) What sort of business management or professional practices classes does the school or program offer? How are these introduced?

8) What sort of interdisciplinary opportunities or combination degrees does the school or department offer? Are there opportunities to minor or study in other (non-art) areas?

9) Does your school or program have regular guest artist lectures or Visiting Artist critiques from active professionals in the field? How often?

10) How does the school or program develop writing and critical thinking skills?

11) What is the ratio of fulltime professors to adjuncts? (Believe it or not, this will greatly affect the quality of education at a given program).

12) Are the adjuncts unionized? (Again, this matters).

13) What sort of tracking of alumni does the school do? How good is the alumni network? Does the school ever offer opportunities for career advancement to alumni?

14) What sort of specific networking opportunities outside of the campus community does the program offer?

15) Is an internship required for graduation? If the only offerings are unpaid internships, what networking opportunities will they include for possible career building during or after school? Does the school have any funding (such as work study) so that students in internship programs can earn wages or financial assistance?

16) Does the school have a Career Services program? If applying to an art program at a large university, how much assistance can art students and alumni count on Career Services for actual help? At art schools, a Career Center is targeted towards art careers, whereas a Career Center at a large university may be spread too thin to offer any support of value. And even at art schools, a Career Center may be limited to helping those in the applied arts - ask if they have workshops or advice on such grant writing, using Kickstarter, financial planning, etc.

Some other helpful articles:

5 Things You Must Do When Applying to Art Colleges
Art and Music Schools: Should you go to one?
The Reality of Going to Art School and the Basic FAQ For Those Considering It

Thanks to Katie Baldwin, Amanda D'Amico, Gerard Brown, Zoe Cohen, Reed Davaz McGowan, Kristi Holohan, Kara Petraglia, Michelle Ramin, Jessica Ramsay Liberatore, Elisabeth Nickles, Nova Printmakers, Kathryn Sclavi, Kathrine Worel, and Imin Yeh for help assembling this list of questions.

Upcoming Workshops for 2015

Papermaking with Plants
MARCH 22 BERKELEY BOTANICAL GARDENS
10 AM - 4 PM
$80 members/$85 non-members
Contact for more information: Mary Mworka, gardenprograms@berkeley.edu

Learn to make art from your own garden! No experience neccessary. This class will discuss the basics of harvesting, cooking, and processing plants and forming into sheets of handmade paper. We will use some plants from the Botonical Gardens themselves, and participants are welcome to bring in contributions from their home gardens as well. You’ll never look at your garden the same way again!
To register, please visit here.


Hand Papermaking and Pulp Painting
9:30 AM - 4:30 PM
March 28, Kitsune Community Art Studios, Half Moon Bay, CA
Cost: $85 Covers class fee and all materials
Contact for more information, or to register: Judy Shintani, judyshintani@yahoo.com

Learn the basics of making handmade paper in the European tradition. Students will the basics, from dry fiber to sheet formation, as well as techniques for embellishing bare sheets into works of art using a technique called Pulp Painting. Pulp painting uses finely beaten paper pulp that can act almost like paint to make brilliant imagery in handmade paper. When dried, the painting is an actual part of the paper, which can stand alone or be transformed further through drawing, printing, traditional painting, or whatever you can think of for a mixed media creation. This class will cover various pulp painting techniques including direct painting, stencils, collage inclusions, and other means of pulp-based mark-making. Techniques for making paper at home will also be discussed. Students will leave the workshop will a number of their own wet papers that will dry at home. No prior experience necessary.

To see images of previous workshops at Kitsune Community Studio, please visit here.


Hand Papermaking and Pulp Painting
1-5 PM
April 4, Rocinante Press, Oakland, CA
Cost: $80, covers materials and class fee
Offered through ExchangeWorks
For more information, or to register, please visit ExchangeWorks.

A class simliar to the one offered in Half Moon Bay, in Oakland, CA. Follow the link to ExchangeWorks to register.

Why printmaking?

What drew me to printmaking was my passion for mark making. The four main traditions – relief, lithography, serigraphy, and intaglio – offer exponentially more methods to make marks than I can by simple drawing. As someone who frequently mixes processes in the same image, I chose the process best for making the mark I want.

As I grew, printmaking became more a meditation and a narrative to me. At the impetus, the process – carving wood, rolling up stones or blocks, scraping and burnishing plates, grinding stones, pulling screens physically and fully absorbs me in the present. The repetition of the multiple is also a part of this.

Printmaking engages my narrative content – the subject matter becomes intertwined with the story of the processes engaged, so much that I am often unable to say which was the original inspiration for how the piece came about.

At times, students and administrators ask me why printmaking should continue to be included in curricula. Unlike more commonly recognized art forms such as painting or drawing, printmaking engages a student in a directed process. By engaging in this process, a student observes how they think and learn. By its very nature, printmaking engages metacognition.

As printmaking often takes place in a community setting, i.e., the shared space of a printshop, social interaction is a natural part of the learning process. Often, as educators, we forget that humans are social animals, and that communal engagement enhances learning. In my experience, I have witnessed numerous students make great conceptual leaps due to peer interaction in the printshop.

Since movable type was invented in China, printmaking has an interrelationship with history of communication and the exchange of ideas. When this inheritance is united with metacognition, the study of printmaking reveals insights into the human condition.

Drawing/Errors

For the next nine months, I'm teaching drawing. Drawing with a little color theory and basic painting thrown in. Back to basics, which, considering I began art school in 1995 (almost twenty years ago!) is waaaay back for me.

It's wonderful. I have a group of students who all want to be there. Don't get me wrong, I actually enjoy convincing teaching students who don't like art, don't think they are good at it, don't want to be there, turning them onto art as something enjoyable, expressive, necessary. But it is nice change to have students who want to dive in fully. Yesterday, a student pulled out a drawing she did on the first day, and the drawing she had done that morning - and was astounded by home much she had grown in just four full days of work.

I'm getting to draw too. Actually, considering how so much of my drawing in the past few years has been purpose-driven - for a print, for a project - I was a little nervous at first. It's been a while since I've had time to just draw for no intention but drawing. And at first, I kept remembering some of my teachers who liked to show off, to show how "good" they were, how "perfectly" they could draw, how much cred they had.

And then I remembered teachers who taught the technical skills, but also made sure to teach the gestalt, the passion, the magic of drawing. One distinct memory is of being in a life drawing class with the professor linked above, and being shown sketches by Pontormo in which he had erased and redrew figures, adjusting them till everything felt complete. And I thought about this in comparison to the teachers who showed off.

The teachers who showed me the mistakes taught me to see drawing as a journey, an adventure, an experience that enabled growth and insight.

I'm also familiar with the story that many art school survivors tell - that the study of art can drain the passion for it. This happens for many reasons - sometimes for teachers who are closeminded or threatened by the questions and new ideas that students present, that feel that Art fits a certain definition that a student doesn't fill. Sometimes its because a student encounters the rigor, demands and sacrifices of what the academic study of art requires and chooses a different path. So a midst teaching a technical grounding, I'm simultaneously trying to build gestalt, passion and awareness of their own growth.

For instance, I remember in Basic Drawing with Frida Fehrenbacher, spending two extremely focused hours drawing cross contours of objects. When we had about forty minutes left of our three hour class, she told us to put these drawings away and to take out a new piece of paper. And then she engaged us in scribbling, erasing, and loosening up. I remember how energizing the experience was, gifting us with a balance and also insight into drawing as a place. The memory of this moment has stayed with me; and it is something I incorporate into my teaching now.

Next week, I'm taking my students to the Cantor. By taking them there, of course I want them to be inspired and to develop understanding of some great works of art. But I also want them to understand that by choosing to study art, these works are their inheritance. Not just theirs, of course, really all humanity (which is why they belong in museums, particularly museums with free admission like the Cantor). More than that, I want them to consider that by choosing to be an artist, a person says that yes, sometimes the world sucks, but they believe that that is not the default model of humanity. That by learning to draw, they are embarking on a path to making the world better.

Workshop in Half Moon Bay!

Last weekend I went across the water and "over the hill" to teach Pulp Painting at Judy Shintani's Kitsune Community Studio in Half Moon Bay. Outside her studio, her neighbor had lovely garden, much which was watered that day with our leftover water. Part of the garden was the amazing hanging cabbage garden above.

As we were setting up, one of the two studio cats, Winky, decided to get comfortable on Reed's station.

However we were soon off to a very productive day.

Reed did some interesting experiments with veil pulp and thread - laying thread down before the veil layer, then pulling it away to create a negative mark.

I even got to play! I left the thread in this piece and a few like it; it made me think of rhumb lines. I did trim the ends after the paper dried.

It was a warm, sunny day, and as we wound down, I think Lisa's piece below summed up what we were all thinking.

Before heading back to the East Bay, several of us stopped to see Judy's show at Harbor Books and Gallery. This picture really doesn't do the pieces justice - they are powerful and sublime.

Both Judy and Reed took some great photos - you can see them here and here respectively. It was one of those workshops that left me exhausted and exhilarated; so much so that Robert commented on it when I got home. For me, it was fulfilling to work with a small group of very interested (and interesting!) people. And of course, to talk papermaking all day.

Upcoming Workshops Summer 2014

Pulp Painting at Kitsune Community Art Studio!
Studio of Artist Judy Shintani, 514 Kelly Ave, Half Moon Bay, CA
July 27, 10 AM - 4 PM
$80 Covers class fee and all materials

Join us in July to learn the basics of making handmade paper in the European tradition. Students will learn the basics, from dry fiber to sheet formation, as well as techniques for embellishing bare sheets into works of art using a technique called Pulp Painting. Pulp painting uses finely beaten paper pulp that can act almost like paint to make brilliant imagery in handmade paper. When dried, the painting is an actual part of the paper, which can stand alone or be transformed further through drawing, printing, traditional painting, or whatever you can think of for a mixed media creation. This class will cover various pulp painting techniques including direct painting, stencils, collage inclusions, and other means of pulp-based mark-making. Techniques for making paper at home will also be discussed. No experience necessary. Limited to 6 participants. Please bring a lunch.

After the workshop, consider enjoying a walk on the beautiful beaches of Half Moon Bay!

To pay and register for this workshop, please follow this link. Enrollment limited to six participants.

Handmade Paper and Pulp Painting
Gualala Arts Center, 46501 Gualala Road, Gualala, CA
August 2, 2013 10 AM - 4 PM

$100 Members, $115 Non-members, $20 materials fee
Join us in beautiful Northern California to learn the basics of making paper by hand! Students will learn to form sheets in the European tradition, and to embellish these sheets using finely beaten pulp in a technique called pulp painting. No prior experience necessary. To learn more about this workshop, visit here.

To register for this workshop, please call the Gualala Arts Center at 707-884-1138.

Please note, these are wet classes. Please wear shoes and clothing that can get wet.

More papermaking at Magnolia Editions

Just finished up another workshop at Magnolia Editions - this time, a focused class in pulp painting. The class set a new record for me in distance traveled by a participant - this time it was Florida!

Above, you can see the entire class took place under the very intense gaze of Chuck Close in tapestry form.

Jenny (pictured above) has made paper with David Kimball, and brought along a pouring mold he'd made for her many years ago. Here she is experimenting with incorporating doilies into the poured sheet.

The class only had six students, all of whom worked pretty much nonstop. My assistant Heather and I had to switch off for lunch, since the students wouldn't slow down. Some of them stopped and had a quick snack, but I'm not sure all of them did.

Don introduced an interesting technique. Using a piece of gampi that had been digitally printed with one of his and Era's images, he laid it under a screen that he'd gotten from a commercial paper manufacturer. The printed image was visible through the screen - although I think a thin pellon would work just as well. Students in the class played with painting some pulp using the image as a guide.

We tried pulp with formation aid and without. You can see the difference above - the yellow is without formation aid, much clumpier. Whereas the black pulp paint has formation aid and appears much more smooth, controlled, and linear.

After the class was all done giving it a try, a sheet of paper was pulled and couched on top of the pulp painted design.

The whole thing was pressed in the group pressing at the end of the workshop. A close up is below.

I'm not sure I've ever had a class go through so much pulp, make so much paper. I was kept so busy these are the only photos I took.

On Saturday, May 3, Magnolia will be offering the workshop "Creating Paper Sculptures," Rhiannon Alpers, a highly recommended class. For more information or to arrange payment, please email papermagnolia@hotmail.com.

Upcoming Workshops for Spring 2014

Pulp Painting Techniques at Magnolia Editions
Saturday, April 5, 10 AM - 4 PM
Oakland, CA

Handmade paper can act as more than sheets - finely beaten paper pulp can function like paint! When dried, the pulp painted imagery is a part of the actual paper, which can stand alone as a work of art or be transformed further with printmaking, photography, collage, painting, becoming an extraordinary mixed media creation. This class will cover various pulp painting techniques, such as direct painting, stencils, and collage inclusions. Students are encouraged to bring items for inclusions, such as fabric, old photographs, thread, lace, or other items that will not bleed when wet.

Please reserve your spot by emailing papermagnolia@hotmail.com, and don't hesitate to pass this info on to anyone you know who might be interested.

Handmade Paper from Plants
Pollinate Farm and Garden, Oakland, CA
Sunday, April 6, 1-3 PM

In this fun workshop, students will learn the basis for Western-style paper making, using edible and ornamental plant fibers. The hands-on portion of the class will cover basic paper sheet formation as well as fiber preparation and artistic embellishments. Participants will leave with several wet papers to be dried at home. This is a wet class! Please bring a new roll of paper towels and wear clothing and shoes that can get wet. This class is appropriate for children over the age of 8 when accompanied by an adult.

To register, please visit here. For more information on Pollinate Farm and Garden, please visit here.

Introductory Papermaking at Magnolia Editions

While almost all my paper buddies were in St. Louis for Dard, I was teaching an Introductory Papermaking workshop at Magnolia Editions. Above is a shot I took from the new space above the beater room, where the drying box now lives.

We also went over beating fiber, showing students that paper is really made in the beater, even more so than in the vat.

My workshop included a special appearance by Don Farnsworth. Don is one of those people who can take any subject, and relate it to the whole world. For instance, when I was discussing hydrogen bonding in papermaking, he mentioned how that is the same reason that water has a meniscus, and how this related to water's behavior in both laboratory settings, but also lakes and rivers. Towards the end, Don did a quick Japanese paper demo.

I was sorry to miss Dard (although I was there in spirit), but felt so honored and grateful to teach at Magnolia. And due to popular demand, they offered a second session on November 16! I believe there is still a slot or two left, email papermagnolia@hotmail.com to reserve one of the last spots!

Too busy to blog!!

So much has been happening, and I am overdue to post so many things...and will soon. Meanwhile, I completed the print above. It's grown out of the collages I've made over the spring and summer.

On another note - due to popular demand (!!!) Magnolia Editions is offering a second Introduction to Papermaking workshop with my on November 16. For more information, or to register, please email papermagnolia@hotmail.com.

Upcoming Papermaking Workshops at Magnolia Editions!

We are pleased to announce that Magnolia Editions will be hosting papermaking workshops in our newly renovated paper studio!

Please reserve your spot by emailing papermagnolia@hotmail.com, and don't hesitate to pass this info on to anyone you know who might be curious about how paper is made:


Introduction to Papermaking
Instructor: Michelle Wilson
(special appearance by Donald Farnsworth!)
Saturday, Oct. 19 from 10 am to 4 pm:

Learn the basics of creating your own handmade paper in the European tradition with Cotton and Abaca fibers. From the linter and beating stage to finished sheets, you will learn the process for making paper with different moulds and in a variety of colors. Students will learn to set up vats, pigment fibers, form and embellish sheets of paper. We will begin with a brief introductory lecture and spend the rest of the day making paper. Students are encouraged to bring items to use as inclusions such as dried flowers, lace, fabric, or old printed materials that will not bleed when wet. Please note: this is a wet class – participants are encouraged to wear clothing and shoes that can get wet.

Instructor Michelle Wilson is an artist in whose work handmade paper plays a central role, whether in printmaking, book arts, or installations. She teaches throughout the Bay Area, most recently at San Francisco State, the San Jose ICA Print Center, and the Kala Art Institute.

Japanese Papermaking
Instructor: Carol Brighton
Saturday, Oct. 26 from 10 am to 4 pm:

Japanese paper (washi) is world famous for its beauty and strength. Learn to make traditional washi step-by-step from cooking and beating the fibers to sheet formation and drying. We will make sheets on sugetas (Japanese moulds) and Western style moulds, learn to laminate inclusions in collage, and explore other techniques for decorative papers. Students are encouraged to bring items to use as inclusions such as dried flowers, lace, fabric, or printed papers that will not bleed when wet.

Instructor Carol Brighton is an artist whose handmade paper expertise can be seen in her printmaking and pulp paintings. Brighton teaches papermaking at the Academy of Art and also conducts printmaking workshops in her own studio.

The fee for each workshop is $120 per person; classes will be limited to 8 participants each, so early reservations are recommended.

Again, to reserve a place in these workshops, please email papermagnolia@hotmail.com.

Wildcat Canyon - new artist book

Some shots of my newest artist book, Wildcat Canyon. It's a unique book, made of handmade paper with pulp paint and inclusions, using some of the techniques I will be demonstrating at my upcoming pulp painting workshop.

This book is an example of something I encourage people to consider when making paper and pulp painting - is the piece finished when the paper is dry? Or does something more happen to it (drawing/printing/painting/collage....). In this case, I assembled the various experiments into a book.

There is still room for a few more people in the workshop on July 27. Hope to see some of you there!