Artist Bookmaking with Limp Hand Paper Binding

As we wait to go on immersive creative adventures again, join VAWAA Artist and hand papermaker Helen for artist bookmaking. On Sunday, April 26, at 1:00 PM EDT (UTC-4), we'll be learning how to turn one sheet of paper into a beautiful, small 8-page artist book. We'll use limp hand paper binding techniques to encase it. Limp binding is a bookbinding method that uses flexible paper or parchment as the covering material instead of wooden boards. We'll reconnect a few days later, on Friday, May 1 at 5:00 PM EDT (UTC-4), to share creations, learnings, and feedback. Limited to 12 participants.

What you'll need

- six sheets of A-4 paper

- a smooth kitchen or plastic knife (for folding crisp edges of the paper)

- pencils, crayons, magic markers (anything to draw with)

- collage materials: magazine/ newspaper clippings, candy wrappers, labels, recycled paper images from mailings, catalogs, etc.

- glue stick or tape

How to join

We'll be hosting this VAWAA Online on Zoom. We'll send you the link and details to join via email a few hours before it begins.

About Helen

Helen is a visual artist specializing in hand papermaking. She first fell in love with papermaking while visiting paper mills in Ahmedebad, India as a student in the 1970s. In the forty years since, she has travelled extensively in Asia, Africa, and Europe to learn about, collaborate with, and exhibit alongside other papermakers. For Helen, papermaking is both an intellectual journey and a practice of cultural literacy. She works with Western and Eastern paper traditions, creating hand formed sheets of paper that vary from colorful to thin and translucent. Printing, drawing, and bookmaking are also part of her work. As the founder of a renowned center for contemporary printmaking, a university educator, and a prolific studio artist, Helen is a cornerstone of the international papermaking community. You don’t need to travel the world to gain Helen’s global experience—she brings the world to her studio!

Visit her artist page to learn more about her in-person VAWAA.

Sessions are ticketed to support artists, makers and our small team. If you’re experiencing financial hardship, please reach out. We may have a generous participant who has paid it forward and would ask that you pay the love forward by sharing online sessions with 3 new friends.