There is always paper wasted in the home, work place, school and within our local community. Paper is a cheap, used commodity that is readily available, with numerous uses and infinite practicalities. We no longer consider its birth from a great tree, cut down and shredded to fibres to produce an item that is plain and ready for our ideas, or printed and named for purpose.
As long as there is no plastic mixed with the paper, if it is clean and free from contamination, it can be shredded and reformed into new paper.
Children love the sensory, immersive process of making paper... Taking the old apart with abandon, to rip, tear, cut and shred the old. To saturate with water, the gloopy, sloppy and mushy.
A tool is introduced; a noisy household item that is instantly recognisable from the kitchen, they can operate independently to finely chop the paper to become unrecognisable. The new pulp then must be pressed through a frame to mould a new shape, dried and pressed flat a new sheet is formed.
And like a cooking recipe it is there to be modified, experimented with, different ingredients added depending what is to hand, and shared with friends to enjoy the result.
A process that lasts days and weeks, that is physical and immersive, it encourages dialogue and there is a tangible outcome. We cannot help but have a more mindful usage of paper after.
What are we discarding? Can it be reused?
What other material do we waste? How else can we repurpose? What else can be reformed?
Finding purpose in rubbish, researching waste materials with children, developing solutions and creating long-term sustainable possibilities
please contact info@corneratelier.com
please contact info@corneratelier.com
