ON WASHI PAPER Rebirth of a Tradition
Paper is such an inspirational material that as designers, we want to explore it more and more. Paper in different cultures has various meanings. Especially in the Far East, where paper was first created, nurtures an artistic ritual of creation: it is assumed to be very precious and valued. In modern sense, this nobility in creation process of the material starts to disappear and becomes highly destructive of the environment. I will be questioning some current examples of industrial paper in design and will focus on the origins of papermaking in parallel to the oldest type of paper invented in Japan; washi.
As a project, my aim is to bring back this old tradition which is assumed to be one of“The Living National Treasure” in Japan to an old warehouse located in Brooklyn, close to Gowanus Canal and will be designing a temporary artist residency/workshop space that will revitalize ‘the craft of traditional Japanese papermaking’ as well as share it with the community.
Thesis Advisor: Alexa Griffith Winton