More paperclay articles? click here.
By Graham Hay
This paper explores recurring technical problems, the seduction of paper, an update on the history of paperclay and a draft outline on factors influencing the spread of paperclay.
TECHNICAL PROBLEMS
There are two main methods of making paperclay, the first of which is to mix a puree of shredded paper and clay slip together before reducing the water content. This is the process that I personally used (see Ellery (1995), or Hay (1996)a, for detail). The second is dry mixing of the clay ingredients with shredded paper (which also breaks down the paper) before adding water to create a plastic paperclay. This is the process used by some commercial manufacturers.
For this discussion, I will focus initially on the first method of paperclay making, as it combines techniques of both papermaking and clay making. Those who have made their own paperclay, please excuse me while I briefly describe this for those not familiar with this process.
In this method, both the clay and shredded paper are mixed separately with water. In one bucket, the ingredients of the clay are thoroughly mixed together in water. In another bucket of water, the shredded paper is stirred vigorously in water to break it down into individual cellulose fibres. If the paper is not completely broken down into individual cellulose fibres, then there are a number of adverse consequences. If small flakes of paper are intact within the clay body then the clay will be uneven on the wheel and structurally weak after firing. Structural weaknesses are likely to cause the collapse of ceramic work if it is made of thin rods or sheets. It is for this reason that the paper must be broken down completely in water, before mixing it with the clay slip.
Because I make my slabs of paperclay by throwing the clay repeatedly on the ground I can visually identify any inconsistencies in the clay. Because the clay is stretched, rather than rolled out any inconsistencies create lumps or holes in the thrown slab. This informal testing has identified a couple of the paperclay manufacturers who have had problems in breaking down the paper into cellulose fires, possibly due to a far too short mixing period. Balls of damp paper, or gray streaks from the paper on the fired clay body, are usually indicative of this problem. For this reason I have become reluctant to create as delicate paperclay sculptures as I have when I made my own paperclay. However, competition between the three paperclay manufacturers and feedback from paperclay users will eventually result in a consistently high quality product. So to speed up this improvement in quality do send in samples of doughy paperclay to the manufacturers so that they get direct feedback and can amend their process immediately. I am planning to setup a paperclay specific discussion group on the Internet to enable paperclay users to share ideas and experiences directly, rather than indirectly through myself. Those interested in joining this free service or have specific questions relating to this paper please send a message with your email address to me at paperclay@hotmail.com. (Ed: this email address no longer contacts Graham Hay, refer to wwww.grahamhay.com.au/paperclay.html for the forum)
PAPERCLAY TO PAPER IMAGES
I want to now briefly discuss how process influences imagery.
Consider again the mixing of paper with water step when making your own paperclay. Breaking down the paper into cellulose fibre in water duplicates the papermaking ritual of breaking down plant material into cellulose fibre within water. In papermaking, the fibre is then sieved from the water on a screen to become damp sheets of paper. While in paperclay-making the slip is poured onto a plaster slab to dry and become a “sheet” of paperclay. The sheets of dry paperclay produced influenced much of my early work. It looked like sheets of cardboard stuck together.
By borrowing papermaking techniques and producing “sheets” of paperclay, paperclay artists making their own paperclay can be influenced by the paper material culture. Some artists, such as myself, use paperclay, not simply as”souped up” clay but rather as a “souped up” paper. What I mean by this is those who build the final work with dry sheets or parts. That is, use kitset techniques of making all the parts perfectly, drying them before sticking together with slip.
Art material influences the imagery created in paperclay. Another division may appear. This was because each “group” was influenced by their training or induction into the cumulative knowledge of their craft, past individual studio rituals, their studio equipment and perceived audience expectations. Of course, these are generalizations, and many artists played with both traditions in the imagery used. But the point being made is: that using papermaking techniques within a ceramic studio to make paperclay sensitizes the artist to paper, paper imagery and the role of paper in society.
I will illustrate how these contrasting dualities of material culture influence paperclay imagery. The page, the book and the picture on the wall are all rich subject matter or starting point for artwork. I call this the “seduction of the page”. Each artist will respond to this in his or her own way.
For me, a byproduct of recycling paper into paperclay is to actually use paper to create solid 3D objects, which can also read as pages of text. Individual paper sheets could either be shaped by cutting with a scalpel or compressed together and machined into the desired shape. Through trial and error I found that woodworking tools were perfectly suited for doing this. The only variation was that I found, after drilling through 60 metres of quality paper, metalwork drills were more suitable. Band saws, belt-sanders, routers and arbor tools made the process quick and easy.
From this it is a small step to work with paperclay using simplified woodwork techniques. The paperclay was shaped at the plastic stage into the desired shape and then at the dry state sanded with emery paper and water. Tongue and grove joins and “gluing” with slip followed. Using woodworking techniques logically lead to creating work with visual references to wooden furniture.
A HISTORY
The addition of cellulose fibre, or plant material, to clay goes back many years. In researching for her definitive book on paperclay Gault (1998) found that in India paper mache clay has been used for thousands of years (p. 11). Rhodes (1973) claimed archeological evidence that Pre-Colombian potters had used cattail fuzz in their clay (p. 57) and points out that in the Bible there is mention of using straw in brick making in Egypt (Exodus Chapter 5). From their research we can see that paperclay has its roots in a number of different crafts and arts practices.
Mike Kusnik, who did much to introduce and spread the use of paperclay in WA, claimed that paperclay was used and written about in the industrial ceramic industry in the 1960’s (Hay 1996b). Apparently it had been used in sheets as a kin shelf protector. In 1989 he introduced paperclay-making techniques to local ceramics and exhibited paperclay works. Parallel to this at Banff, Canada, in 1990, artist Ibrahim (Abe) Wagh introduced paperclay to Gault, Sorotschynski, Clark and Buckley. A year later, again at Banff Wagh, Gault and Gartside experimented further with paperclay. Gault went on to research, teach and write extensively on paperclay around the world and now has an informative website, funded from royalties from the commercial manufacture of P’clay (paperclay) in the USA.
FACTORS INFLUENCING THE SPREAD OF PAPERCLAY
The circulation of information on paperclay is only one step in the spread of the use of paperclay. Another key agent in the spread of new technologies is commercial support. The laborious and messy process of making paperclay discouraged many of my initial students from continuing with the material. Once Christine Baumeister convinced Tony Puglisi at Clay Cottage Pottery to convert some of his clays into paperclay and also sell it, then the more persistent students made the pilgrimage to the Osborne Park factory. When Cook Industrial Minerals took over the paperclay manufacturing and began to sell it to retailers the material finally became convenient and widely available. I presume a similar chain of events occurred on the East Coast of Australia. The result of this commercial support is that paperclay is as conveniently available, in the same size bag and at a similar price to traditional clay.
Yet, information and convenient access to a “new” material are insufficient conditions to encourage the spread of paperclay use. Established potters and artists have insufficient time or inclination to unlearn old techniques and learn new ones. Changing a studio over to paperclay would involve considerable time in testing and then converting their preferred clays into paperclay. There is little financial incentive, either in reducing their costs or in increasing their sales. Those who have taken it up have appeared to do so for artistic reasons, because it enables them to create work that was difficult or impossible to make in conventional clay.
The social aspects of art and craft practices must play a role. Having conducted over 50 workshops over the last seven years, I have discovered that an introduction to a new material and its techniques in this manner is still insufficient exposure to convert people working in clay over to paperclay. This is because there are an insufficient number of people around regularly using it, with whom ideas, problems and solutions can be shared. Once this happens then paperclay becomes part of the “social life of clay”. That is, it becomes a basis of social conversation and hence cultural memory. Reality is socially constructed and if an idea or skill is not part of social interactions then it is less likely to persist.
Educational institutions and ceramic groups also play a very important part. The basis of these organizations is the ongoing sharing of techniques and processes. Moreover, within their libraries or through different members they have access to most international, national and local publications, which feature articles on paperclay. More importantly, they provide opportunity for ongoing experimentation with new materials and the sharing of experiences, problems and solutions. They provide the support necessary for the development of new material cultures. I benefited from this while a student at Edith Cowan University and Curtin University, with a number of other students also experimenting and sharing information on paperclay.
Today I enjoy the same information sharing within the Thermal Shock ceramic group, and across Australia with artists and ex-students working with paperclay. In addition, since 1993, I have maintained regular contact with Rosette Gault in the USA and occasionally others via the Internet. Perhaps one of the most satisfying sources of information, support and challenges, is a community-based class I established early last year. There is a core of regulars who present me with weekly challenges, and a wider group who come and go depending upon interest and their circumstances.
Ellery, D. (1995). Profile - Sold on Paperclay. Pottery in Australia, 34, (1), 20-21
Ellery, D. (1994). Making Clay while the Sun Shines... Pyre: Journal of the Clay and Glass Association (WA), (2), 6-7.
Gault, R. (1998). Paper Clay, A & C Black, London and University of Pennsylvania Press, Pennsylvania
Hay, G. (1996)a More on Paperclay, Ceramics TECHNICAL, No.3, 1996, pp22-28
Hay, G. (1996)b With but not on Paper, a history of paperclay in Western Australia. Pyre: Journal of Clay & Glass Ass. (WA), 9, 4-5.
Rhodes, D. (1973) Clay and glazes for the potter, A & C Black, London (2nd Ed) p. 57-59.
More paperclay articles? click here.