All quotes excerpted from essays, artist statements and interviews written to accompany the exhibition. Read full text at materialassumptions.wordpress.com.
The Center for Book and Paper Arts is dedicated to the research, teaching, and promotion of the
interdisciplinary practices that support the book arts and hand papermaking as contemporary art
media. The Center is part of the Interdisciplinary Arts Department at Columbia College Chicago,
and in addition to housing both graduate and undergraduate classes for that department, it
publishes a critical journal and artists’ books, mounts exhibitions, hosts artist residencies, sponsors
The papermaking ritual became a collaborative
symposia and public programs, and provides advanced study through a workshop program.
model for us, and strengthened our relationship
Their work deepens the discourse in the field
at large at a historical moment in which
… Ultimately, the planning, consideration,
the relevance of analog artistic practice is
and implementation of each artist’s request
considered in relation to digital media.
Melissa Potter, Acting Director and Assistant
Professor, Book & Paper Program
This handmade connection—creating the visual
We seldom regard the structural potential of
starting point—drew us further into each artist’s
paper, but when its interlocking fibers are
intention; and as artists communicated their
infused with a vehicle like resin it creates a
projects to us through proposals and emails, we
composite structure with a formidable strength.
gained a deeper sense of what the commissioned
Ian Schneller, project statement
to the material through the labor of craft.
resulted in more than one hundred sheets of
handmade paper, formed from fifty pounds
of pulp, over the course of just five days.
Elizabeth Isakson-Dado, from “Labor,
Process, Dialogue: Hand Papermaking
as Collaborative Model”
I utilize weaving, paper cutting, sewing,
bookmaking, tracing, printing, and copying,
work would be, and how we would choose to
arrange the work as curators in the gallery.
I clearly remember a day where I was walking
Elizabeth Isakson-Dado, from “Labor,
Process, Dialogue: Hand Papermaking
as Collaborative Model”
past a fire extinguisher mounted on a wall,
and suddenly had an image pop into my head
to meditate on the powerful visual and the
emotive impact of the repeated image.
Anna Tsantir, project statement
of it shooting out paper pulp instead of that
foamy stuff that’s actually inside it. Perhaps
it comes from working directly with materials
The edge suggests a kind of certainty that
is never fulfilled by the full composition.
Papermaking is important precisely because
day in and day out, or maybe it comes from
it is not precious; that is, its value comes
generally having my head in the clouds most of
Dan Devening, project statement
from knowledge and skill sharing not reserving
the time, but I often amuse myself with these
or preserving; it, as a material, should be
kinds of ideas. I like to make associations
between similar materials, and then draw out
Paper is a modular, malleable substance
ideas from what happens between the two.
that has limitations and conventions of use.
-Kate McQuillen in conversation
with Hannah King, co-curator
These conventions are pushed, stretched, and
treated carelessly in order to learn the most
Pa p e r a s D i a l o g u e
June 15 – August 11, 2012
A second part of the exhibition features
works created by artists in-residence at Dieu
Donné, a New York-based non-profit artist
workspace dedicated to the creation, promotion
The work presents hand papermaking
about its potential as a medium. Studio
collaboration as an artistic exercise in and
practice must adapt to this reality.
This exhibition is about the discursive ways that
hand papermaking process. There, residencies
Co-curators
of itself, one in which the collaborator
C.J. Mace, from “Crafting Encounters: Papermaking
and Maker Culture in Contemporary Media”
artists approach paper as a medium, technology,
afford both emerging and established artists
Jessica Cochran
and tool. Hand papermaking is a process that
an opportunity to see how handmade paper
Elizabeth Isakson-Dado
can work for them in important ways.
Hannah King
challenges us to consider where, how, and at
and preservation of contemporary art in the
utterly broken by the artists who may have no
what moment art is made through her ability to
begins with the raw material of pulp or fiber
investment in the fact that it is handmade.
conceptualize and interpret in this medium.
and ends in sculpture, new media, performance,
C.J. Mace, from “Crafting Encounters: Papermaking
and Maker Culture in Contemporary Media”
Melissa Potter, Acting Director and Assistant
Professor, Book & Paper Program
mixed-media installation and beyond. To that end,
To us “handmadeness” points not to a certain
this exhibition asks us to consider not only the
aesthetic or visual trope, but to realms of
Wo r k s f r o m D i e u D o n n é b y
“in-between” of the virtual and the real,
utility and potential of paper itself, but also the
possibility; for example, subtle combinations
Polly Apfelbaum
transforming the handmade via digital/
collaborative process of hand papermaking at the
of texture and color or a deceptively weightless
Sonya Blesofsky
intersection of interdisciplinary arts and crafts.
surface—all in service of conceptual gesture
Mel Bochner
and complex, meaningful expression. As such,
Nina Bovasso
For the exhibition, we asked contemporary artists
Material Assumptions calls into question our
Beth Campbell
to create new work using abaca and cotton paper
expectations of handmade paper in terms of
Chuck Close
handmade to their specifications at the Center
its aesthetic and raison d’être, dynamically
Ian Cooper
Given that our work tends to live in the
automated processes felt like yet another “in-
Generative exhibitions like this one, those
between” that our work is now able to occupy.
that result in the production of new works, are
essentially rooted in an “open and curious”
Annica Cuppetelli and Cristobal
Mendoza, project statement
C.J. Mace
approach meant to provide artists with the “best
The work stems from my interest in atmospheric
I seek to display hidden confinement, through
possible conditions” for their vision. At the
phenomena, the experience of flying and the
opening up and dissecting objects, showing the
same time, they leave ample room for chance,
geometry of cities at night as seen from above.
for Book and Paper Arts. In doing so, we initiated
affirming its relevance as an interdisciplinary
Matt Keegan
hidden dysfunction of relationships in these
and in the process they complicate the role of
Susan Goethel Campbell, project statement
dialogue concerning not only the paper itself, but
and contemporary artistic mode of activity.
William Kentridge
spaces. I illuminate social confinement, through
the physical combustion of my sculptural objects.
Julie Schenkelberg, project statement
also each artist’s creative processes and studio
the curators. … The same space, however, that
The laborious processes that often characterize
and help define craft are really encounters,
acts that make desires manifest in some
allows for small failures and insecurity on the
practices. Some of the resulting works exemplify
The exhibition underscores the Center
Jessica Stockholder
side of both curator and artist, also provides
broader tendencies in that artist’s oeuvre, while
for Book and Paper Arts’ commitment to
Richard Tuttle
others reveal formal departures or new directions.
hand papermaking through studio-based
room for the extraordinary. As I write this, the
concrete way as catalysts for the dialogue
works have not yet been finished, and they
between us. “Handmade” is just one way
Glenn Ligon
Traditionally, artistic practice can be a very
practice, experimentation and research.
N e w l y C o m m i s s i o n e d Wo r k s b y
to symbolize not so much the labor of the
will not arrive to the gallery for weeks. Artists’
solitary experience. At Dieu Donné, the artist
Dan Devening
handiwork but a labor to connect made physical.
reports from the studios, however, reveal works
is challenged with a different environment:
Deborah Boardman
These objects are a social interface …
in progress that are fascinating and relevant…
a bustling studio, unfamiliar equipment
Material Assumptions: Paper as Dialogue was
Annica Cuppetelli & Cristobal Mendoza
and materials, and trained papermakers who
curated as a part of an independent study in
Susan Goethel Campbell
have dedicated their careers to working in
curatorial studies led by Jessica Cochran, Curator
Daniel Luedtke
a medium developed over 2,000 years ago
of Exhibitions and Programs, and Melissa Potter,
Niall McClelland
... Many of our artists have later confessed
Acting Director and Assistant Professor, Book
Kate McQuillen
their initial anxiety and fear that they would
& Paper Program, Columbia College Chicago.
Zoe Nelson
C.J. Mace, from “Crafting Encounters: Papermaking
and Maker Culture in Contemporary Media”
Jessica Cochran, from “Paper as
Pedagogy, Curating as Dialogue”
Julie Schenkelberg
be the first in our long history not to find
The cotton and abaca fibers hold gouache
a way to work in this unfamiliar medium. It
Special thanks to Lauren Shaw, Gallery Manager,
Ian Schneller
paint very differently, and I was challenged
just doesn’t happen. Experimentation, play,
Dieu Donné, for curatorial assistance, as well
Matthew Shlian
to remain nimble in my encounter with each
and even failure are encouraged, but uniquely
as Boo Gilder (MFA ’13) and Trisha Martin
Anna Tsantir
supported by our artistic collaborators.
(MFA ’12) for paper production support.
sheet. I was especially fascinated by the
transparency of the abaca, and the possibility
of painting on each side of the sheet.
Kathleen Flynn, from “Artistic
Collaboration at Dieu Donné”
Deborah Boardman, project statement
Dieu Donné is a non-profit organization dedicated to the creation, promotion, and preservation
of new contemporary art utilizing the hand papermaking process. The organization’s primary
services and programs are devoted to working with mid-career and emerging artists to develop
new, innovative methods of papermaking within the medium and the greater world of contemporary
art. These programs provide a significant educational opportunity for contemporary artists
by engaging them actively in the approaches to hand papermaking that Artistic Director Paul
Wong has developed through collaborations with artists since our inception in 1976.
material_Columbia_catalog_12.3.indd 2-3
6/19/12 8:08 AM
Annica Cuppetelli & Cristobal
Mendoza, Work in progress, 2012
Elizabeth Isakson-Dado, C.J. Mace & Hannah
King (left to right) / paper production at CBPA
Nina Bovasso, Black Flowers with Rainbow Colors, 2006; cotton base sheet
with cotton pulp painting and screenprint, courtesy Dieu Donné
Work in progress by Niall McClelland
Zoe Nelson, Her Holes 11, 2012
Ian Cooper, Chalice, 2010; Handmade denim and
cotton papers, commercial papers, fabric, cast
paper pulp and mixed media, courtesy Dieu Donné
Deborah Boardman, untitled work in progress, 2012
Jessica Stockholder, ADT, 2005;
collage, courtesy Dieu Donné
Mel Bochner, Language Is Not Transparent,
1999; watermarked translucent abaca on
black cotton, courtesy Dieu Donné
Susan Goethel Campbell, Other Cities (detail)
(Photo by Tim Thayer)
Glenn Ligon, Self Portrait at Eleven Years
Old, 2004; cotton base sheet with stenciled
pulp painting, courtesy Dieu Donné
Dan Devening, Untitled, 2012, acrylic and collage
on paper
Richard Tuttle, Entertaining..., 2002; sugar
pine with satin polyurethane finish, maple
plywood, letterpress on pigmented, embossed
cotton paper, courtesy Dieu Donné
Work in progress by Ian Schneller
Jessica Stockholder, Violet Haze, 2005; pigmented
abaca base sheet with pulp painting and
archival inkjet print, courtesy Dieu Donné
Work in progress by Anna Tsantir
Elizabeth Isakson-Dado and C.J. Mace (left
to right) / paper production at CBPA
Dan Devening, Untitled, 2012, acrylic and collage
on paper
William Kentridge, Anne, 2009; watermarked
cotton, courtesy Dieu Donné
Polly Apfelbaum, Power to the Flower, 2007
stenciled linen pulp paint on abaca; color
and shape vary, courtesy Dieu Donné
Deborah Boardman, untitled work in progress, 2012
Chuck Close, Watermark Self-Portrait, 2007; Light
and shade watermark, courtesy Dieu Donné
Sonya Blesofsky, Broadway Development
Williamsburg 2006; II, 2007 pigmented abaca
on pigmented cotton, courtesy Dieu Donné
Matthew Shlian
Work in progress by Julie Schenkelberg
Work in progress by Ian Schneller
Matt Keegan, Picture Perfect (Monoprint #3),
2010; stenciled pigmented linen pulp on
cotton handmade paper, courtesy Dieu Donné
Center for Book and Paper Arts
Steve Woodall, Director
Gina Ordaz, Assistant to the Director
Jessica Cochran, Curator of Exhibitions & Programs
April Sheridan, Studio Technician & Special Events Coordinator
Brad Freeman, Studio Coordinator & Editor, Journal of Artists’ Books
Tracey Drobot, Administrative Assistant
Jeremy Jennings, Gallery Assistant
Susan Goethel Campbell in her studio (Photo by Tim Thayer)
Caitlin O’Meara, Gallery Assistant
Kate McQuillen, Skirt, 2012
Jessica Stockholder, On the Ledge, 2005; collage, courtesy Dieu Donné
material_Columbia_catalog_12.3.indd 4-5
Beth Campbell, Potential Store Fronts
Sketch, 2007; ink and colored pencil
on abaca, courtesy Dieu Donné
Center for Book and Paper Arts at Columbia College Chicago
1104 South Wabash Avenue Chicago, IL
www.colum.edu/bookandpaper
6/19/12 8:09 AM