Online Exhibitions

On a blue-grey background, Bark Rhythms is written in white san serif letters above smaller light blue text that says Contemporary Innovations & Ancestral Traditions. The text sits above four detail images arranged side by side. The first image is an Otomi Spirit created from cream colored amate mounted on a rust colored amate sheet. Second in the row are a set up brass Daulang beaters with black wrapped handles. The third image is a close up of a kite created by Lehuauakea. The kite surface features a series of rust colored triangles on a cream background. Lastly there is a close up of a piece by Shelia Nakitende that combines crocheted raffia with barkcloth paper and a burn mark drawing.

Bark Rhythms: Contemporary Innovations & Ancestral Traditions

May 6 - August 23, 2024

Sponsored by North American Hand Papermakers and the Robert C. Williams Museum of Papermaking, Bark Rhythms is curated by papermakers Jill Powers and Lisa Miles as part of NAHP's second Guest Curated Exhibition Triennial.

Bark Rhythms: Contemporary Innovations & Ancestral Traditions features historical examples of hand-beaten bark papers, barkcloths, and traditional beaters, paired with the work of contemporary artists from global communities who use bark fiber materials and techniques in innovative and unexpected ways.

Highlighting the manifestation of ancient traditions into distinctive, contemporary art practices, this exhibition connects the dots between bark paper and barkcloth, and shines a light on makers who maintain a deep respect for their materials, techniques, tools, and cultural origins. Although not comprehensive, Bark Rhythms focuses on bark paper and barkcloth traditions from Mexico, Hawaii, the Polynesian Islands, Indonesia, and Uganda, and marks the first time many of the artists have exhibited work in the United States.

Light blue NAHP in capital letters over the words North American Hand Papermakers Juried Exhibition Triennial. White text with the date January 16 - April 12, 2024 followed by wavy red text with the title of the exhibition, Sustainability in Chaos. White text that reads Juried by Helen Hiebert and Eileen Wallace, featuring twenty-nine artists. All the text appear on top of a dark blue background.

Sustainability in Chaos

January 16 - April 12, 2024

The North American Hand Papermakers' 2023 Juried Exhibition is called Sustainability in Chaos. We are pleased and honored to have Helen Hiebert and Eileen Wallace as the 2023 jurors.

We are witnessing sudden, surprising, and sometimes unexpected changes in our time and lifestyle today. Anarchy, war, and disease have become our nation's daily concerns and only news. Even if we do not face these situations directly, in our social and economic lives, wherever we are, we witness the prevalence of chaos in various forms. Artists have shown their animus in chaotic human situations in different ways, such as through visualizations, music, poetry, photography, etc. They depict it in dream-like abstractions, express it in realistic depictions of life, inform the mind, or convey their empathy through art.

https://www.northamericanhandpapermakers.org/2023-juried-show

Two green strips of text at the top and bottom of the image provide the exhibition title and exhibition dates. Between the strips is a photograph of a paper architectural sculpture by Jorqe Benitez. The structure is an all white hexagon with a dome roof reminiscent of a mosque. Above the door are two stars and on the walls to the left and right of the door is a casting of a slice of bread with bones lying on the slice. The photograph is surrounded on the left and right with arabesque patterns traced on a white background with graphite pencil.

Geometric Aljamia

September 2 - December 6, 2023

Geometric Aljamia: A Cultural Transliteration is a cross-cultural collaboration that addresses how connections between the Middle East and the West during the Golden Age of Islamic Civilization continue to be relevant and vibrant in the twenty-first century. The project includes artists, designers, performers, and writers from Afghanistan, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Canada, and the United States. Aljamia is a medieval Spanish word that refers to Romance language written in Arabic script. The resulting transliteration contributed to the dissemination of the Arabic language and Islamic influences throughout the Iberian Peninsula and beyond. By understanding the arts as a transliteration of one form of thinking to another and addressing the fundamental patterns and geometry embedded in visual art and poetry, this project revisits the ongoing impact of Islamic art, science, and philosophy throughout the world today.

Exhibition curated by Reni Gower

Black rectangle background with seven squares that show a detail shot of each of the seven artists in the exhibiti. The title "Pulped Under Pressure" sits at the center with the detail shots forming a square around it. To the right of the images the list of artist names appear.

Pulped Under Pressure

May 8 - August 4, 2023

With traditional hand papermaking at its core, Pulped Under Pressure underscores important
contemporary issues steeped in history and craft. Enticed through touch, these works encourage a
contemplative slowing down even as they urge acknowledgement of some of the most pressing issues (environmental crisis to global marginalization) facing civilization today. Each of the artists, Jillian Bruschera, Julia Goodman, Reni Gower, Trisha Oralie Martin, Melissa Potter, Marilyn Propp, Maggie Puckett, starts simply with a foundation of pulp made from natural fibers. Their multifaceted results incorporate a rich range of printmaking, letterpress, papercutting, and installation with a diversity of recycled disposable materials (junk mail, egg cartons, old cotton t-shirts, ripped denim jeans) as well as old bedsheets, beetroot, heirloom plants, and illuminated el wires. In very unique ways, these artists consider paper beyond its most common function as a passive surface of record or craft. Instead, the material is transformed and imbedded with content that turns communication into a public practice. By challenging assumptions, the artists of Pulped Under Pressure create artworks that are both beautiful and brave.

Vintage image of two boxers facing off on top of an indigo dipped handmade sheet of paper

When Print Meets Paper

January 17 - April 21, 2023

Curated by Georgia Deal, When PRINT Meets PAPER focuses on artists working at the intersection of print and paper. This show includes the work of Melissa Harshman, Kelly Taylor Mitchell, Marilyn Propp, Gretchen Schermerhorn and Georgia Deal. Each artist approaches the “marriage” of paper and print in unique ways, some coming from the lexicon of print and others from a primary focus and love of hand papermaking. It can be argued that a commonality connects the works, with the origins of printmaking historically addressing social, political and narrative themes.