My Blog

Paper Art

Seastone Papers : Inside of Sandy Bernat's studio in West Tisbury, on Marthas Vineyard, is where I've spent my last three mornings. This is one of my completed projects. If you had ever asked me whether or not I had any interest in making paper, I would have assuredly said no, but that was before meeting Sandy two Saturdays ago at the Tisbury farmers market, where I first laid eyes on her beautiful coptic bound journals constructed of some of the most exquisite hand made papers I have ever seen. She uses locally harvested fibers and botanicals, as well as cotton rag and hemp. The cover of the book I bought has bits of a hornets nest added, as inclusives, into the pulp. Sandy is both an english teacher and a paper artist. She has traveled to remote areas to study the art of handmade papers. With her papers she creates individual books, each of which is a unique and individual piece of art. The three classes I took were "Monoprinting with a Gel Plate", "Collaged and Printed", and finally "Making Gel-Printed Books". I plan to return for a papermaking sampler class. You can visit Sandy's website, but for a real treat stop by her studio on your next trip to Marthas Vineyard, or maybe even sign up for one of her many classes. I may see you there!