Pulped Under Pressure: The Art of Handmade Paper

With traditional hand papermaking at its core, PULPED UNDER PRESSURE underscores important contemporary issues steeped in history and craft. Enticed through touch, these works encourage a contemplative slowing down even as they urge acknowledgement of some of the most pressing issues (environmental crisis to global marginalization) facing civilization today. Each artist (Julian Bruschera, Julia Goodman, Reni Gower, Trisha Oralie Martin, Melissa Potter, Marilyn Propp, Maggie Puckett) starts simply with a foundation of pulp made from natural fibers. Their results incorporate printmaking, letterpress, papercutting, and installation with recycled disposable materials (junk mail, egg cartons, old cotton t-shirts, ripped denim jeans) as well as old bedsheets, beetroot, heirloom plants, and illuminated el wires.