Washi home-brew


jewelia (jewelia@erols.com)
Sat, 13 Mar 1999 11:36:53 -0800


jewelia:

last week -- i wrote an introductory sort of essay about making paper
western style --

this week -- will do the same for making washi -- once of the reasons for
describing the western methods first (typical cotton rag paper making) was
to provide a basis of comparison for this -- and again -- i am by no means
the world's foremost expert on papermaking -- i've just found the
papermaking experiences i have had useful to my work in many ways and one of
the places i gained a heightened sensitivity for materials was from this
experience --

(just like i have from seeing the work of certain artists who seem to me to
have a good balance and approach to their work -- there are certain artists
were you can just feel this when you see their work even if they are and
work very different from you.) augghhh jewelia -- aren't you <looking> a
might sentimental (and romanticly parenthetical)? yeah, well, i'm a bit
human still and sometimes feel too much for some people's suits. so please,
excuse my faults-----i really enjoy seeing other peoples work---okay?
WHAT-----ever... (spoken with a puzzled side to side movement of the head)

back to my current marginal topic of interest to some: The japanese call
western papermaking tame-zuki whereas they refer to their method as
nagashi-zuki. the common term "zuki" comes from the word "suku" - to make
paper. "tame" comes from "tameru" -- which means "to fill and hold"
describing more or less how the mold and deckle is used in western
papermaking. "nagashi" comes from the word "nagasu" which sort of means "to
flow of slosh". This is a good beginning in describing the difference
between the two and it is not that there is no art in dipping a western
mold--but i would say that "flow and slosh with a high degree of art" might
be even a better way to relatively think about washi --

now it is really impossible for me to describe the details of this for
you --or even as i know them --simply here -- it will take a sort of book or
pamphlet -- but i will try to give you an idea of what is involved and
within a week say a little more about why some of you --like me--might be
interested in pursuing more of this...i'm going to leave out some of the
background--such as how kozo, gampi, and mitsumata are grown and/or
harvested for now and focus on what you would most likely do if you were to
attempt to make your own washi.

you would first buy your own bast--one of more of the fibers--it will be the
inner bark--some comes really clean compared to others-the unclean part are
remnants of outer bark mostly -- where it was not cleanly stripped off (this
is a lot of hard hand work) the more expensive ones tend to be
cleaner--basts tend to run about $5 to $35 a pound dry. what you get is a
bundle of strips. The strips tend to be about a meter long--the base end
seems a little like a hide and as you go toward the smaller end--it is
similar to wood strips used to weave a basket--the bundles of strips are
just gorgeous in their own rights--you might have a tough time puting this
stuff in the pot. the more expensive ones *tend* to be from japan, higher
quality (from certain perspectives any way), and cleaner. one pound will
make you about 150 12x16 sheets--about 4 times more than western?

preparing the fibers:
having your bast--you might clean it a bit -- then soak it overnight to
soften it up--the next day you would cook it in a stainless steel pot for
several hours in a 20% soda ash solution (think lye--there are several
similar alternatives but don't use a cheap aluminum or other metal pot that
will be eaten up). i have one of those large stainless pots you can buy for
canning or cooking your blue crabs in old beer and old bay seasoning when
company comes (its what we do over here) how long you cook is part of the
art--it changes the character of the fiber and thus the paper--put you must
cook it long enough so that the fibers can be easily pulled apart when you
tug at a piece gently with your fingers. you would wash the fibers off
really well after cooking--you want to get all of the chemical out of it--as
well as you can. you would then go through the fibers in a bucket of water
and pick them clean with fingers or tweezers (yes-again) to get out all the
little dark flecks of outer bark and stuff out-- they seem to come out of
nowhere--picking what was a dry pound of fiber really clean could take you a
half day--but think of it this way---you might learn to hum or sing at the
same time. if you leave the specks in--you get a chiri paper that has
specks in it and that can be just fine and beautiful--okay if that's what
you want. if you want clean--well you gotta clean! next you gotta
beat--you take your coaked, washed, cleaned bast and put in on a nice
surface than can take a bit of a beating and you beat for +-several hours--a
lot of people use wooden mallets or you can buy more traditional beating
sticks--they look like the paddles wiccans use to stir their caldrons--or
like one of those sticks some europeans chase each other around a field with
for fun flattened out--you can use either one or you can use two--if you're
like me--and poorly coordinated--then i recommend that you use two to teach
yourself a little more rhythm (this is the way i tend to think/behave in
regards to my work--you know personal enrichment stuff). how long you beat
depends on what you want again but you should beat such that if you put a
pinch in a clear glass or bottle of water you get sort of a full cloud in
there and not clumps of fibers. at this point--if you're a regular sort of
human being and doing this alone--you might want to stick your prepared
fibers in the fridge and drink a lot of wine while sitting in a nice hot
bubbling whirlpool/sauna followed by a good drubbing with some linament and
hope there is more of you left for making sheets tomorrow or in a couple
days. some people -- who faint easily or have other reasons -- prefer to
beat their fibers mechanically--usually in a hollander--you have to be
careful not to tear the fibers up too much and leave the rotor way up --.

the su and keta: about all that is special that you really need in order to
make decent washi

the su is the most delicate and important instrument for nagashi-zuki -- and
the quality of you su will make all the difference assuming everything else
is okay with you of course -- no hope for me but i try to pass anyway---a
quality su is made from bamboo splints woven together with silk thread (by
hand). the splints can be smaller in diameter than most round wooden
toothpicks and the sewing must be done in a very special way so that the
spacing of the splits (they must have small consistent gaps between them)
remains actually consistent and is both *strong* and *flexible*--the sizes
and spacing determine characteristics of the paper that will result--so they
can vary from su to su on purpose--a su must be able to curl easily in one
direction for couching (say "kooching" not what you sit on). the splints
are made by pulling rough splits out of primo sections of bamboo through a
series of holes each a wee bit smaller than the one before so that you get
very even little ones. the silk threads are almost microscopic and somehow
(a) highly skilled person(s) can make these most beautiful and delicate mats
for making paper that you won't want to dip into the vat for the first
time -- at least that's my take (not many su artists left these days --was
only one artist who made the special silk threads used to sew them and 10 su
(mat) sewers as of the mid-eighties--and a good su can be hard to get--was
almost impossible a few years ago and this was a big crisis--its been
somewhat revitalized now and some are available in the world market
today--yes, i have one and girl am i ever proud of my su!). you can get by
with some homemade alternatives to the su--i won't go into them here

the keta (i've run into different spellings for this and Barrett just calls
it mold and deckle in his book): the su is more or less clamped into the
keta to form a sheet. the keta is hinged on one side and clamped at the
opposite--just two tabs hinged on one that sort of pop on and off the
other--the basis of design for the arrangement is--the su is taken in and
out of the keta during sheet making but must be held taught and flat while
forming a sheet. so what this looks like is sort of like 2 picture frames
hinged together with tabs that clamp on the far side. the "mold" is the
side with a few cross pieces. the su is clamped on top of the mold--top
surface up (there is a difference).

the su and keta are assembled and presoaked prior to making paper--(means
each use)

making sheets:

the vat & fiber stock: a measured amount of fibers is added to an estimated
volume of water and stirred up really well with a stick to break up any
clumps--more vigorously than you might do for western cotton pulp. then a
quantity of formation aid is added to the vat --making a good "slimey" with
a good stir too. Traditional formation aid--tororo-aoi is made from a
root--of the "tororo" plant. You might end up using a synthetic
approximation of this called simply formation aid 'cause the "real" thing is
real hard to get hold of. there are 2 types. generally washi is made with
no additives because many additives mess up the action of the formation aid.
if you don't add an internal size or any other additive you would use
ACP-PNS---usually sold more simly as PNS. Otherwise, with other additives
in your vat, you would opt for PMP. the formation aid not only thickens the
solution to slow down the drainage so you can have a good slosh but causes a
dispersion of the fibers-setting up a sort of a repelling, organizing
electostatic thing of a charge. i believe this causes the individual fibers
to arrange themselves in an agreeable crossing-way (sounds like a
parlimetary democratic debate over fibers) for making good sheets of strong
washi--so, compared to cotton rag papers, we have longer stronger fibers
arranged in sort of a deterministic chaos of a fashion -- this is my,
jewelia's, way of thinking about it anyway--the usual cultural warnings
apply about minds that attempt to be more creative.

sheet formation: the traditional method (to make the very best) is to keep
the fibers constantly in motion and sort of riding in the wave--so you may
have natural advantages if you live in a rubber suit in Carmel or can do
that thumb-little finger thing on a beach most anywear. anyway--a good
papermaker makes a series of dips of the bottom area (1/4 to 1/2) of the
near edge of the su into the vat--sloshing in sort of figure-eights causing
a sort of a wave to roll around-across the su in between dips. as part of
the action they also sort of toss off extra material from the back in
between dips while they slosh and roll. Forming a sheet in this way can be
a minute or two of constant motion as a thin layer of even fibers is laid
down in this manner in the su. not enough formation aid--everything runs
through to quick --too much the opposite too gooey problem. Instead of the
combined figure eight pattern of sloshing--others might opt for what seems
simpler--fore and back, then side to side, dip, fore and back, side to side,
etc... you figure out your own eros de pathos metaphor--at any rate no two
people do this precisely the same and one of the challenges is to do this
consistenly enough that any one sheet looks like it sort of could be the
same paper as the rest of the stack--sort of like they belong at least to
the same community like an edition of platinum prints (wonder why it seems
washi is not a consistent seeming surface compared to that other paper you
use? strive for, they say consistency, livliness, and control--like poetry
of some meter---makes so much room for creative surprise--both good and
bad--frustration? or creation?---me--i've learned i'm better off if i'm
never absolutely certain of the difference. last year's bad print seems
this year's good surprise sometimes--what was wrong with me then? what
about now? beats me....i just do it and have a great time...look, try to
think anew, and do....

that was how it is supposed to be formed more or less--some people just pour
it on like you could with a western paper or dip it sort of western
style--depends on skill and what you want it for--you have to remember when
you talk to papermakers you are talking to people who see themselves making
poetry or other art forms from paper. lots of them are also sculptors,
artist book makers, printmakers, photographers, or other artists and they
make paper according to their purposes including just pieces of paper they
call and exhibit as art--in fact, i met a poet in residency who was there
just to make paper and print his words using silk screen for a project-had
to be taught every step of the way a wee bit and this affected his
words---so there is much variation and traditional ways might be "boring" to
others, vice versa -- they are as diverse a community as we are--a good
thing to keep in mind when you talk to them. and--my point is that i really
can't tell you how to do this or what ways better or what pulp is better --
i can just share a few ideas--maybe show you some of my meager attempts some
day--and you can develop your own style--that is if you want--else this
could--if you want--help you understand a little more about that surface you
are working with today so it is more of a wonder than a disgust???
oh--jewelia--turn off your philosophy and just stick to art------huh?
...........well-lets go on to couching for a moment....

Couching: now this is really where things get crazy--if you
want--traditionally after the sheet is formed the su is removed from the
keta carefully in a certain way so that the paper is away from you when the
su is dangled with one hand --usually the left they say--grasp the other
with the right and whallah-- the su is rotated over your head to the other
side to the post--where it the su is rolled out (down)--keeping it in a
steady curl-- onto the couching surface--starting from one end.
traditionally this is done couching sheet to sheet (no felts my friends),
more typically especially if you are a western imitator of seldom
practice--you might use interleaved felts as in western practice until you
have the rest down --right?-- and i was taught to do this by some
experienced makers who still did this for their work anyway. traditional
makers are very careful of laying these sheets down precisely one on top of
another in a very controlled manner--for most people this is like today's
popular usa gladiator game --what's it called--fumbles? the traditional
workers generally have a table with a corner post on one corner extending
upwards maybe a foot of so and a smidgen in width along both directions--a
board is placed in this corner and one felt on top of that--afterwards no
felts are used until you are finished and it is capped off with a felt and
board--meanwhile when each sheet is couched -- the corner post serves as an
alignment tool. in some cases a spool of thin thread--silk or perhaps nylon
thread from a spool at the edge of the post is wound through the stack
(sometimes called a post) as the sheets are laid down to help separate the
sheets later. there is an art to getting the paper to stay in place while
the su is lifted away--takes a lot of feel and awareness of surface
tensions--too much to attempt to describe here--but all in all this makes
that western couching seem pretty simple--like the western dip.

Pressing: once a stack is finished it is pressed but with washi--this takes
time and the pressure is built up gradually and only a little is used to
keep the sheets from laminating -- typically weighted boards as in the
blotter stack method of drying prints is used or s simple press arrangement
you can build with boards and a minimum of hardware store fasteners. at
first maybe several hours of just the board on top and then increasing
weight--perhaps filling a 5 gallon pail over the next 24 hours. if you use
a stack of felts--it can be done similar to western--this will change the
surface character of the paper i would expect--not necessarily bad but
different.

afterward, the paper is dried. the sheets are separated one by one and
laminated to boards left to dry in the sun or to a drier that might be
constructed from two sheets of noncorrosive sheet metal in sort of a narrow
pup tent (almost vertical sides) fashion. generally steam in introduced
inside to heat them and the sheets are laminated and popped off dry fairly
quickly. homemade rigs just set a hot plate and boil water underneath. the
sheets are laminated with a naga brush or you might just use a wall paper
brush and the idea is pretty much the same.

ta--daaa! got your own washi--sounds simple and like great fun----eh????

for some--a way to work with materials, for others helpful in thinking and
understanding a surface, for others just something to exercise the delete
button over--but my fingers are done for the day and i'm off to look for a
new pants suit for M. Imagine Mei.

have a good day and warmest regards

jewelia Margueritta Cameroon
one more to come--the big Why bother



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