Papermaking: Mould, Deckle, Watermark! 3-part Series with Katy DeMent

A signature in the paper

The project starts with Western-style, 11-by-14-inch moulds made for the workshop by Contemporary Craft Artist-in-Residence Aidan Rhoades in the organization’s Wood Studio. DeMent will teach participants to attach screens to the moulds and add their own bent-wire watermark designs.

A watermark is not printed on a finished page: it is formed as part of the sheet. Differences in paper thickness make the design visible when the sheet is held to the light. The workshop offers a way to make that mark personal while learning how the papermaking tool is put together.

Participants keep their mould and deckle, and Contemporary Craft says they can bring them to a later Open Studio. That future studio use is separate from the three-session workshop.

Further reading: Papermaking: Mould, Deckle, Watermark! 3-part Series with Katy DeMent - Contemporary Craft ↗ · Papermaking: Mould, Deckle, Watermark! 3-part Series with Katy DeMent Tickets, Tuesday, November 17-Tuesday, December 8  •  5:30 PM-8:30 PM | Eventbrite ↗

Paper as an artistic material

DeMent brings decades of papermaking experience to a series that also covers the medium’s histories, fibers, tools and processes. Her own handmade paper becomes part of books, sculpture and lighting, among other works.

Her practice incorporates sustainably collected plants as well as recycled and invasive fibers. She also uses materials such as photographs, cloth and found objects in work that can include light or movement. The class focuses on making the mould and watermark rather than promising to reproduce those finished artworks.

Further reading: Papermaking: Mould, Deckle, Watermark! 3-part Series with Katy DeMent - Contemporary Craft ↗