This week in my art studio...

Today I started a 3 day blitz of making botanical pulp as part of my preparations for my upcoming exhibition "Conservation of the Species".

I'm lucky in that I've got everything I need at home to make botanical pulp - a garden full of potential material, an electric cooker, and an outdoor sink complete with insinkerator.   Its the first time I've used my insinkerator and its great - really speeds up the beating of the fibres.

Today I cooked up corn husks (luckily my chickens LOVE corn, so there's no shortage of husks) and lemon grass (from my friend Floss's garden).  Tomorrow I'll be processing banana leaves, heliconia and ginger.  And Mum will be bringing around a couple of bags of day lilly prunings from her garden as well.

Some of the fibre I will keep for workshops, but most of it will end up as artworks at my exhibition, combining printmaking with papermaking with a nature theme.

my electric cooker

Cooked lemon grass fibre before beating

Cooked and beaten fibre

 

my insinkerator installed under my outdoor sink

Inky and Pepper supervising my work (NOT).
Pepper is moulting so I've been collecting
her beautiful feathers for my basketry,
nothing goes to waste at my house!