This program offered by: Romana Sena

Papermaking can be traced to about AD 105, when Ts’ai Lun, an official attached to the Imperial court of China, created a sheet of paper using mulberry and other bast fibers. Since then, the practice of papermaking has spread to a variety of other cultures incorporating other naturally sourced materials like hemp and bamboo. To honor origin and tradition in a modern world, we will be sourcing our own discarded fibers that we find in paper from our classroom’s recycling bin. This includes past homework assignments, unclaimed coloring sheets, no names, and most importantly, our mistakes. As an artist, I source the paper I use or share with my students from previous paper arts I’ve taught, such as origami, zine-making, old sketchbooks, and even junk mail. This modern take on papermaking offers students a hands-on recycling experience, allowing them to see the creative possibilities of reusing ethically sourced materials firsthand, rather than just observing the process at a recycling center.