***To check against the CD Rom
Digital copy of Hay, G. (1999) Paper and Clay Edge: 9th National Ceramic Conference CDROM, Ceramic Arts Association of Western Australia, p.487-493
PAPER and CLAY
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 paper making 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 grey 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 doughie 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 [email protected].
Paperclay to paper images
I want to now briefly discuss how process influences imagery.
MAYBE UP TO HERE PROOF READING
However, now that there are three paperclay manufacturers I am confident at least one will seek to build a reputation for a consistently high quality product.
Consider again the mixing of paper with water step for making your own paperclay. Breaking down the paper into cellulose fibre in water duplicates the paper-making ritual of breaking down plant material into cellulose fibre within water. In paper-making, the fibre is then sieve 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.
By borrowing paper-making techniques and producing “sheets” of paperclay, early paperclay artists were also influenced by the paper material culture. Early paperclay artists used paperclay just like clay and others using paperclay just like paper. This was because each “group” were influenced by their training or induction into the cumulative knowledge of their craft, past individual studio rituals, their studio equipment and perceived audiences’ expectations. Of course, these are generalizations, and many artists played with both traditions in the imagery used. But the point being made is: that when using paper-making techniques within a ceramic studio to make paperclay sensitizes the artist to paper, paper imagery and the role of paper in society.
Returning to PaperI 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. Individual paper sheets could either be shaped by cutting with a scalpel or compressed together and machined into the desired shape.Scalpel 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 metresof quality paper that 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. With these process comes imagery with references wooden furniture but also other ceramicists who explored similar imagery.
A HistoryThe 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 papier-mâché 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 papier-mâché art, traditional ceramics and adobe brickmaking.
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 shelve 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 to go 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 PaperclayThe 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 make the pilgrim to the Osbourne Park factory. When Cook Industrial Minerals took over the paperclay manufacturing and begun to sell it to retailers then 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 to paperclay would involve considerable time in trialing 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 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. Have 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 needs to be a sufficient 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 be persistent.
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 were 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.
Other materials
The challenge that we now face is how do we respond Some of you may be aware of a “paperclay” which is papier-mâché with clay added to give a smoother finish, and another “paperclay” which does not need to be fired. There is nothing to stop a similar practice with paperclay. To increase the strength then diluted PVA or Bondcrete could be added to the paperclay slip or painted over the dry work.BondCrete This is particularly popular practice when a kiln is not readily available.
This was a dry finely shredded paper pulp with dry clay added. Adding water (and glue?) produced a papier-mâché which had a much smoother finish. Sometimes overlooked is the fact that many quality papers also have clay added, in order to produce a smoother and superior printing surface for the ink.
recognizing that they were using a material with different properties of We then mix with clay before drying. Quality paper manufacturers add clay to their paper to create a smoother and better printing surface. Some of you may have heard of, or seen on TV about five years ago, a “Paper clay” which has a higher cellulose content and which is actually papier-mâché with clay added to increase its malleability.
This separation ensures that when the two solutions are combined then the clay particles penetrate the forest –like tangle of cellulose fibres.
Ceramists who have made their own paperclay regularly may have wondered, and like me, even begun to research the paper-making process. We find that there were, and to a lesser extent still is, whole villages and regions in Japan where quality paper was hand made. I discovered that the better quality and more durable paper was physically hand made from bark from a specific tree. The bark was manually broken after being steamed and constantly washed in the rivers. The cellulose fibres are left relatively intact and are quiet long. Because paper-making involved villages and regions, then production and cultural practices developed specifically associated with paper-making and paper.
So when ceramicist bring paper and clay together to make paperclay, they are not only combining the two materials, but also are the two material histories. Both ceramics and clay have been part of human history for many thousands of years, with their separate processes, rituals and cultures surrounding their makers.
Both protect and sustain human life. Paper is made predominately from organic material, such as
leaves, wood and bark. These materials have been used before to build early shelters and houses in many countries. I myself grew up in a colonial farm house originally built from clay and straw which had been mixed and compressed into the formwork with draft hourses.
The Japanes and others extracted the cellulose material from plant material before making it into paper which was used for communicating, recording as well as house walls and clothing.
During my research into the history I paper in Japan I discovered that the first craft organisation was created by potters and papermakers, in response to similar pressures on their occupations. (details please).
With the removal of protective tariffs, there has been a flood of cheap imported ceramics, pushing many ceramicists out of production of functional ware into decorative and expressive ware. Ceramics is increasingly become a specialised object making, that of objects which communicate information, values, opinions, political beliefs and perception. This shift has has moved ceramics more closely towards paper, as a medium for the fine arts. (admittedly from a different perspective). I could go as far to say, that for many ceramicists, they use the vessel as a curved page, with some not even making their own vessells.
Therefore the merging of two craft based art-forms creates a unique opportunity to compare and contrast their two separate material cultures and try to identify if and where a true hybrid art-form emerges. Furthermore it provides an opportunity to study how a new process and its associated imagery spreads within any artform.
ROLE OF PAPER FOR INFORMATION
If we are incorporating paper into clay then we as ceramicists must also acknowledge the role of paper and its own history, cultural and rituals.
This presentation is called “a paper” and while I am now typing it out, was originally drafted on a piece of paper, and eventually will reach you as another piece of paper. Hence paper is inherently associated with thinking and communication.
NON-FACE TO FACE COMMUNICATON
It initially enabled humans to extend their communication methods from the face to face, to communicating over many miles, across seas and around the world. It also transcended the immediacy of the spoken word and so enabled a degree of permanency and precisions to develop, in contrast with oral traditions which change over time in response to their enviroment.
PERMANENT COMMUNICATION
Paper can therefore be seen as an agent not for change but for permanency, formality and rigidity.
Paper becomes a permanent voice regardless of an audience, or reader. Provided an appropriate environment excess paper based texts and images can last thousands of year. Much like early ceramics it provides a record of the lifestyle and values of a past time.
This permanency enables paper and clay to become a growing store of cumulative human knowledge and refine culture via symbols, and images and language.
DUPLICATION
Old and new technology enables these permanent records to be duplicates and distributed widely. From the humble ink pen and potter’s turning wheel through to the photocopier and automatic slip-casters and throwers.
EDUCATION
With a permanent record in clay and on paper, the processes of passing on knowledge becomes quicker and more standardised. Imagine passing on complex mathematic formula or computer circuit design via an oral tradition!
DIFFERENCES:
3D
Paper has enabled the recording of symbol information, that is for words and ideas. It also is used to store visual information in a stripped down and limited manner using a strict code of representation of distance in the third dimension, that is via the rules of perceptive. Rather limited information on surface texture and interior spaces is conveyed via line and tone or cross-sectional records. Clay on the other hand can directly convey information about tactile and interior/exterior relationships. Yet most of our exposure to other ceramics is via impersonal 2D reproductions of the work on paper in magazines and book, or as in this case a 2D slide projected onto a flat screeen.
2D and 3D MERGED
The reason For this long exploration of differences and similarities between paper and clay
HISTORY
One of the first written references to the process of adding fibre to clay to increase its unfired strength and overcome cracking is in the Bible: Exodus Chapter 5, where the Pharaoh deprived the Israelites of straw for their brickmaking.
According to Daniel Rhodes (1973) microscopic analysis of some pre-Columbian American pots discovered that cattail fuzz had been mixed in the clay, presumably to increase its pre-fired strength Rhodes, D. (1973) Clay and glazes for the potter, A & C Black, London (2nd Ed) p. 57. Rhodes also examined adding other fibre, including cloth and Fiberglass to clay.
BIBLIOGRAPHY: CERAMIC PAPERCLAYCampbell-Allen, B (1997) Where there's smoke...paperclay in the Anagama. Pottery in Australia, 36 (1), 16-18.
Caplan, J. (1993). Paper and clay. Ceramic Review, (144), 11.
Ellery, D. (1995). Profile – Sold on Paperclay. Pottery in Australia, 34, (1), 20-21*
----- (1994). Making Clay while the Sun Shines... Pyre: Journal of the Clay and Glass Association (WA), (2), 6-7. *
Gartside, B. (1994a). Suitcase art New Zealand Potter, 36, (1), 17.
----- (1994b). Paper clay. Ceramic Review, (148), 42-43. (Reprinted from NZ Potter, 35, (3), 1993).
----- (1994c). Paper clay 2. Ceramic Review, (150), 38-39. (Reprinted from NZ Potter, 36, (1), 1994).
----- (1994d). Breaking the rules with paper clay. Pottery in Australia, 33, (4), 65-66.
----- (1993). Mix what with clay? New Zealand Potter, 35, (3), 32-33. (see Gartside, 1994c).
Gault, R. (1998). Paper Clay, A & C Black, London and University of Pennsylvania Press, Pennsylvania *
---- (1995). The Magic of Paperclay Ceramic Review, (155), 10-13 *
----- (1994). The Potential of Paperclay Ceramic: Art and Perception. (18), 81-85.
----- (1993). Second generation ceramics: Technical and aesthetic potential of paperclay, Interaction in Ceramics, Art, Design, Research. UIAH: Helsinki, Finland, 75-79
----- (1993-4). Amazing Paperclay. NCECA Journal (National Council on Education for Ceramic Artists), 14-17.
----- (1993). Paper clay for ceramic sculptors: A studio companion. Seattle: Clear Light Books.
----- (1992). Amazing Paperclay. Ceramics Monthly, June/July/Aug, 96-99.
Hay, G. (1996)a More on Paperclay, CeramicsTECHNICAL, No.3, 1996, pp22-28 *
----- (1996)b With but not on Paper, a history of paperclay in Western Australia. Pyre: Journal of Clay & Glass Ass. (WA), 9, 4-5.*
Hawes, W. (1998). Building a Paperclay Dragon, Ceramic: Art and Perception, 7, 36-38
Juvonen, L. (1997). Using paper fiber as a substitute in ceramic clays, 8th CIMTEC World Ceramics Congress, Finenze, Italy June,
Lawrence, J. (1999). A Potter’s day, Ceramic Review, 175, 62
Rassell, J. (1993). Paper clay: Rosette Gault at NCECA, San Diego 1993. New Zealand Potter, (2), 20.
REALLY USEFUL WEBSITES (as at 3 March 1999)
http://art.sdsu.edu/ceramicsweb/ good search site for discussions on paperclay
http://www.digitalfire.com/education/clay/paperclay.htm good no nonsense introduction
http://www.paperclay.co.uk/clay.htm provides prepared paper pulp for making your own paperclay
http://www.ceramicart.com.au/papercly.htm reproduction of CeramicsTechnical article *
http://www.uiah.fi/kll/research/paperclay.html university researching on paperclay
http://www.mimidolls.com/techbook/a_hazard.htm#Hazards dangers of paper, clay & polymer clay
http://www.paperclayart.com/01rosette.html Rosette Gault’s popular site.
Digital copy of Hay, G. (1999) Paper and Clay Edge: 9th National Ceramic Conference CDROM, Ceramic Arts Association of Western Australia, p.487-493
PAPER and CLAY
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 paper making 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 grey 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 doughie 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 [email protected].
Paperclay to paper images
I want to now briefly discuss how process influences imagery.
MAYBE UP TO HERE PROOF READING
However, now that there are three paperclay manufacturers I am confident at least one will seek to build a reputation for a consistently high quality product.
Consider again the mixing of paper with water step for making your own paperclay. Breaking down the paper into cellulose fibre in water duplicates the paper-making ritual of breaking down plant material into cellulose fibre within water. In paper-making, the fibre is then sieve 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.
By borrowing paper-making techniques and producing “sheets” of paperclay, early paperclay artists were also influenced by the paper material culture. Early paperclay artists used paperclay just like clay and others using paperclay just like paper. This was because each “group” were influenced by their training or induction into the cumulative knowledge of their craft, past individual studio rituals, their studio equipment and perceived audiences’ expectations. Of course, these are generalizations, and many artists played with both traditions in the imagery used. But the point being made is: that when using paper-making techniques within a ceramic studio to make paperclay sensitizes the artist to paper, paper imagery and the role of paper in society.
Returning to PaperI 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. Individual paper sheets could either be shaped by cutting with a scalpel or compressed together and machined into the desired shape.Scalpel 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 metresof quality paper that 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. With these process comes imagery with references wooden furniture but also other ceramicists who explored similar imagery.
A HistoryThe 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 papier-mâché 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 papier-mâché art, traditional ceramics and adobe brickmaking.
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 shelve 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 to go 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 PaperclayThe 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 make the pilgrim to the Osbourne Park factory. When Cook Industrial Minerals took over the paperclay manufacturing and begun to sell it to retailers then 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 to paperclay would involve considerable time in trialing 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 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. Have 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 needs to be a sufficient 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 be persistent.
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 were 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.
Other materials
The challenge that we now face is how do we respond Some of you may be aware of a “paperclay” which is papier-mâché with clay added to give a smoother finish, and another “paperclay” which does not need to be fired. There is nothing to stop a similar practice with paperclay. To increase the strength then diluted PVA or Bondcrete could be added to the paperclay slip or painted over the dry work.BondCrete This is particularly popular practice when a kiln is not readily available.
This was a dry finely shredded paper pulp with dry clay added. Adding water (and glue?) produced a papier-mâché which had a much smoother finish. Sometimes overlooked is the fact that many quality papers also have clay added, in order to produce a smoother and superior printing surface for the ink.
recognizing that they were using a material with different properties of We then mix with clay before drying. Quality paper manufacturers add clay to their paper to create a smoother and better printing surface. Some of you may have heard of, or seen on TV about five years ago, a “Paper clay” which has a higher cellulose content and which is actually papier-mâché with clay added to increase its malleability.
This separation ensures that when the two solutions are combined then the clay particles penetrate the forest –like tangle of cellulose fibres.
Ceramists who have made their own paperclay regularly may have wondered, and like me, even begun to research the paper-making process. We find that there were, and to a lesser extent still is, whole villages and regions in Japan where quality paper was hand made. I discovered that the better quality and more durable paper was physically hand made from bark from a specific tree. The bark was manually broken after being steamed and constantly washed in the rivers. The cellulose fibres are left relatively intact and are quiet long. Because paper-making involved villages and regions, then production and cultural practices developed specifically associated with paper-making and paper.
So when ceramicist bring paper and clay together to make paperclay, they are not only combining the two materials, but also are the two material histories. Both ceramics and clay have been part of human history for many thousands of years, with their separate processes, rituals and cultures surrounding their makers.
Both protect and sustain human life. Paper is made predominately from organic material, such as
leaves, wood and bark. These materials have been used before to build early shelters and houses in many countries. I myself grew up in a colonial farm house originally built from clay and straw which had been mixed and compressed into the formwork with draft hourses.
The Japanes and others extracted the cellulose material from plant material before making it into paper which was used for communicating, recording as well as house walls and clothing.
During my research into the history I paper in Japan I discovered that the first craft organisation was created by potters and papermakers, in response to similar pressures on their occupations. (details please).
With the removal of protective tariffs, there has been a flood of cheap imported ceramics, pushing many ceramicists out of production of functional ware into decorative and expressive ware. Ceramics is increasingly become a specialised object making, that of objects which communicate information, values, opinions, political beliefs and perception. This shift has has moved ceramics more closely towards paper, as a medium for the fine arts. (admittedly from a different perspective). I could go as far to say, that for many ceramicists, they use the vessel as a curved page, with some not even making their own vessells.
Therefore the merging of two craft based art-forms creates a unique opportunity to compare and contrast their two separate material cultures and try to identify if and where a true hybrid art-form emerges. Furthermore it provides an opportunity to study how a new process and its associated imagery spreads within any artform.
ROLE OF PAPER FOR INFORMATION
If we are incorporating paper into clay then we as ceramicists must also acknowledge the role of paper and its own history, cultural and rituals.
This presentation is called “a paper” and while I am now typing it out, was originally drafted on a piece of paper, and eventually will reach you as another piece of paper. Hence paper is inherently associated with thinking and communication.
NON-FACE TO FACE COMMUNICATON
It initially enabled humans to extend their communication methods from the face to face, to communicating over many miles, across seas and around the world. It also transcended the immediacy of the spoken word and so enabled a degree of permanency and precisions to develop, in contrast with oral traditions which change over time in response to their enviroment.
PERMANENT COMMUNICATION
Paper can therefore be seen as an agent not for change but for permanency, formality and rigidity.
Paper becomes a permanent voice regardless of an audience, or reader. Provided an appropriate environment excess paper based texts and images can last thousands of year. Much like early ceramics it provides a record of the lifestyle and values of a past time.
This permanency enables paper and clay to become a growing store of cumulative human knowledge and refine culture via symbols, and images and language.
DUPLICATION
Old and new technology enables these permanent records to be duplicates and distributed widely. From the humble ink pen and potter’s turning wheel through to the photocopier and automatic slip-casters and throwers.
EDUCATION
With a permanent record in clay and on paper, the processes of passing on knowledge becomes quicker and more standardised. Imagine passing on complex mathematic formula or computer circuit design via an oral tradition!
DIFFERENCES:
3D
Paper has enabled the recording of symbol information, that is for words and ideas. It also is used to store visual information in a stripped down and limited manner using a strict code of representation of distance in the third dimension, that is via the rules of perceptive. Rather limited information on surface texture and interior spaces is conveyed via line and tone or cross-sectional records. Clay on the other hand can directly convey information about tactile and interior/exterior relationships. Yet most of our exposure to other ceramics is via impersonal 2D reproductions of the work on paper in magazines and book, or as in this case a 2D slide projected onto a flat screeen.
2D and 3D MERGED
The reason For this long exploration of differences and similarities between paper and clay
HISTORY
One of the first written references to the process of adding fibre to clay to increase its unfired strength and overcome cracking is in the Bible: Exodus Chapter 5, where the Pharaoh deprived the Israelites of straw for their brickmaking.
According to Daniel Rhodes (1973) microscopic analysis of some pre-Columbian American pots discovered that cattail fuzz had been mixed in the clay, presumably to increase its pre-fired strength Rhodes, D. (1973) Clay and glazes for the potter, A & C Black, London (2nd Ed) p. 57. Rhodes also examined adding other fibre, including cloth and Fiberglass to clay.
BIBLIOGRAPHY: CERAMIC PAPERCLAYCampbell-Allen, B (1997) Where there's smoke...paperclay in the Anagama. Pottery in Australia, 36 (1), 16-18.
Caplan, J. (1993). Paper and clay. Ceramic Review, (144), 11.
Ellery, D. (1995). Profile – Sold on Paperclay. Pottery in Australia, 34, (1), 20-21*
----- (1994). Making Clay while the Sun Shines... Pyre: Journal of the Clay and Glass Association (WA), (2), 6-7. *
Gartside, B. (1994a). Suitcase art New Zealand Potter, 36, (1), 17.
----- (1994b). Paper clay. Ceramic Review, (148), 42-43. (Reprinted from NZ Potter, 35, (3), 1993).
----- (1994c). Paper clay 2. Ceramic Review, (150), 38-39. (Reprinted from NZ Potter, 36, (1), 1994).
----- (1994d). Breaking the rules with paper clay. Pottery in Australia, 33, (4), 65-66.
----- (1993). Mix what with clay? New Zealand Potter, 35, (3), 32-33. (see Gartside, 1994c).
Gault, R. (1998). Paper Clay, A & C Black, London and University of Pennsylvania Press, Pennsylvania *
---- (1995). The Magic of Paperclay Ceramic Review, (155), 10-13 *
----- (1994). The Potential of Paperclay Ceramic: Art and Perception. (18), 81-85.
----- (1993). Second generation ceramics: Technical and aesthetic potential of paperclay, Interaction in Ceramics, Art, Design, Research. UIAH: Helsinki, Finland, 75-79
----- (1993-4). Amazing Paperclay. NCECA Journal (National Council on Education for Ceramic Artists), 14-17.
----- (1993). Paper clay for ceramic sculptors: A studio companion. Seattle: Clear Light Books.
----- (1992). Amazing Paperclay. Ceramics Monthly, June/July/Aug, 96-99.
Hay, G. (1996)a More on Paperclay, CeramicsTECHNICAL, No.3, 1996, pp22-28 *
----- (1996)b With but not on Paper, a history of paperclay in Western Australia. Pyre: Journal of Clay & Glass Ass. (WA), 9, 4-5.*
Hawes, W. (1998). Building a Paperclay Dragon, Ceramic: Art and Perception, 7, 36-38
Juvonen, L. (1997). Using paper fiber as a substitute in ceramic clays, 8th CIMTEC World Ceramics Congress, Finenze, Italy June,
Lawrence, J. (1999). A Potter’s day, Ceramic Review, 175, 62
Rassell, J. (1993). Paper clay: Rosette Gault at NCECA, San Diego 1993. New Zealand Potter, (2), 20.
REALLY USEFUL WEBSITES (as at 3 March 1999)
http://art.sdsu.edu/ceramicsweb/ good search site for discussions on paperclay
http://www.digitalfire.com/education/clay/paperclay.htm good no nonsense introduction
http://www.paperclay.co.uk/clay.htm provides prepared paper pulp for making your own paperclay
http://www.ceramicart.com.au/papercly.htm reproduction of CeramicsTechnical article *
http://www.uiah.fi/kll/research/paperclay.html university researching on paperclay
http://www.mimidolls.com/techbook/a_hazard.htm#Hazards dangers of paper, clay & polymer clay
http://www.paperclayart.com/01rosette.html Rosette Gault’s popular site.
