James River Series

Posted by jbattenfield

Sheet and images: 20×36 inches, variable.
I admire the incredible work created by papermakers all over the world and wanted to make my own for this series. With expert help at Dieu Donne Papermill in New York and after a lot of experimentation, I found what I looking for with pigmented paper pulp. I worked with master paper maker Megan Moorhouse. She would pull a white sheet of abaca fiber and I “painted” on it with pigmented linen paper pulp. The sheet was finished by pressing out the water and careful drying. Each sheet of paper in this series is unique and evokes endless change in the atmospheric relationship between sky and water, with the stabilizing landscape separating the two. These images are from the James River peninsula near Williamsburg, Virginia. Silkscreened images were done with the assistance of Dusica Kirjakovic at the Lower East Side Printshop, New York (Along the James) and with Sheila Marbain of Maurel Studios, New York (College Creek and Along the James).