Sunday Studio Visit – Paper Marbling

Todays studio visit is about visiting a fellow artists studio…

I have recently made contact with an artist group in my area called MAGNET – Moorabool Artists Group Network. I live on the cusp of Ballarat Shire and the Moorabool Shire and do most of my networking on the Ballarat side of where I live, so when I heard about this group – through an exhibition they held which I visited – I made contact, and have since met with them a couple of times. The group aims to hold regular meetings and dinners, organise exhibitions and workshops, and generally provide support.

Today, one of the members, Robert, who is a marbler on paper and ceramics, and experiments with other materials, generously held a free workshop for fellow group members. He is at the end of a workshop period and needed to use up left over ink and sizing…. what a great offer and professional development opportunity for the group!

I had never experienced paper marbling before and thoroughly enjoyed it!

adding ink to the sizing tank

combing the inks

As with the ceramic process there is an element of randomness and chance, but as with ceramics, the more practice and experience you gain the more ability you develop to control the randomness – well not really ‘control’, but you have more foresight about being able to predict the outcomes. Perhaps this affinity with the ceramic process is what I found appealing… I’ll have to do more and find out!

I think I have found another passion (I am running out of time to pursue all my passions) and am interested to experiment with this process on the ceramic surface, and also some of my own handmade paper.

Following are a few pics of some of my finished pieces taken in situ – some are a bit blurry, but you get the idea – I hope.