Join us September 22nd-24th for From Plant to Paper to Page, a three day workshop by our exhibiting artist Megan Singleton! Participants will learn the basics of making paper by hand from local materials, then use those papers to create one of a kind soft and hardcover pamphlet stick books. Engaging in the paper making process, especially when using local plant fibers, allows people to experience a magical material transformation while learning about plants and a new art form simultaneously. Participants will learn the preparation methods of collecting, cooking and beating fiber, followed by western sheet forming techniques. We will discuss different types of plants suitable for making paper throughput the day while creating beautiful and textural papers from a variety of plants, such as yucca, cattail, and rabbit brush. Creative techniques such as layering pulps, drawing with squeeze bottles, and creating images with stencils will be demonstrated. This paper making exploration will also include wet working techniques to create sculptural book forms. Day Three will conclude with a variety of simple bookbinding techniques using the pamphlet stick and the inclusion natural objects incorporated into the sewing. Students will leave this workshop with a variety of handmade papers, both flat and sculptural, and numerous small sample books. 

Megan Singleton is a practicing artist and educator located in St. Louis, Missouri. Her ecology-based work crisscrosses the boundaries of contemporary craft, combining sculpture, hand papermaking, installation, and digital applications. Her exhibition Fluvial terra exploring Oklahoma’s soil & plant life will be on display from September 7th to October 28th.