Watching the kozo fibers floating in water is pure magic. Pouring bucket after bucket of the mix in paper frames is a luxury, knowing the process behind. In their own fields Awagami Factory are growing mulberry trees, and harvesting their own kozo during winter months. Only the inner bark is being used for paper, and the process from cutting the …
JUMPING IN CIRCELS
I jump, keeping focus on the stone ahead, where I hopefully will be able to land my foot. It was easier when I started my art journey in the late seventies, – in that sense. I made a quick sketch. Based upon the sketch I would develope a picture. Very often using several plates printed on top of each other, …
DREAMING THE FUTURE
In front of the vat, with the pulp floating in water, I move into new landscapes, outside my references. It sharpens my attention and my curiosity. As the dialogue with the material take over, I am totally absorbed. When it works it feels as if my soul is floating along with the pulp. The colours are present in my body …
BETWEEN SHEETS
It certainly opens up for a lot of thoughts, grinding bedlinen from different homes down to fiber. In early summer I had my Little Critter coming all the way from New Zealand, where the artist, craftsman and inventor Mark Lander, make them by hand. It was like a revolution, being able to grind down fibers without cutting them short as …
I AM THE CROW
Artworks from my last visit to Awagami factory March 2020 I am the crow. I have been circling around for days. Under me I see Mother Earth. She is constantly changing. Areas covered with fog are now shining under me in vibrant colours. She looks confident on a distance, but when I go closer to get a rest in …
THE PERFECT DAY – FOR SLOW PAPERWORK
Waking up this morning I felt so and so about the weather, and as the fog was developing into a thick woolen blanket, and the rain was consistent, I planned for some indoor activities. Enough to pick from. Suddenly something struck me, – it might be an idea popping up from my foggy mind, and a loooong picture was taking …
BREATHING IN AND OUT
It has been a while…and a lot of good things have happened. Like March 2018, I spent March 2019 at Awagami Factory, Japan, exploring the world of pulp painting. I will have to come back to that. Too much to include in one post. Back in my studio in Bergen, I picked up the printmaking tread. Full workout with pulp …
Homeless ideas living under ground
There are so many ideas knocking on my door, making themselves attractive, trying to convince me they are the next star. I note down their intentions, assuring them I will be in touch. Sooner or later. Very often I find the same idea coming back, not accepting to be turned away. It has dressed a bit differently, but after a …
Interlude, between adventures
I am looking out of the window, and there are my tables, all empty. Last night I cleaned up my outdoors paper studio. Since June I have been working there, almost every day, seven days a week. It has been a flow, and I have been totally focused. We also had a really hot summer, and staying under the roof, …