Paper Off Skin Finalist and Award Winner!
Winner of the People’s Choice Award!
Kelp Dancer
marine macroalgae paper
The Paper Off Skin exhibiton contained a diverse and innovative collection of wonderful paper artworks, so I am excited and proud to be the recipient of the One Agency Collins Real Estate People’s Choice Award!
The skirt in my finished Kelp Dancer dress has over 30 'fronds'. The design of each of the fronds is different and based on one segment of a single very large bull kelp frond. They are also made from many different seaweed pulps - about 15 different types of Tasmanian kelp.
Read about the progress of the design and construction of the artwork below.
19 March 2022
I am excited that I have been selected as a finalist in the inaugural Paper off Skin Competition!
Paper off Skin is designed to showcase innovative work with paper, and is a sister competition to Paper on Skin, which was established in 2012. Entries for Paper off Skin must be garment related, but do not need to be wearable.
Entry required a description of the proposed work, maximum size 70cm, but the work did not need to have been created.
45 finalists have been selected from 11 countries. The exhibition will open on June 3 in Devonport, Tasmania.
My work is called ‘Kelp Dancer’, a sculptural dress inspired by the forms and movement of kelp. It will be constructed from handmade seaweed paper.
So now I need to get on and make it!
Update 25 March 2022
I have now completed the detailed design for my dress. It may be a little ambitious - there will be 32 individually made pieces of paper! I may not need to use them all, but better to have too many than too few and have to go back and make more further down the track.
I will now work out which pulps to use, and get started on papermaking!
kelp paper pieces for “Kelp Dancer’ dress
Update 21 April 2022
I have finally made all the pieces for my ‘Kelp Dancer’ dress. As well as the 36 pieces in the original design, I have made a further 4 due to a modification of the design. The pieces are all dried and I have started preparing them for construction.
I am pleased with how the pieces are looking! I have used multiple different pulps, using a wide variety of our local kelps. They all have individual patterns and textures.
I am looking forward to seeing how the dress will look!
Update 29 April 2022
I am well in to the construction phase now, gradually adding the individual fronds to the skirt. I am leaving most of the shaping until after all the pieces have been added.
Update 9 May 2022
Kelp Dancer is just about finished!
All the individual pieces have now been added. This includes quite a few extra pieces that were not in my original plan. At the same time, there were quite a few pieces in my original plan that I did not end up using.
The final shaping still needs to be completed. Seaweed paper, especially that which is made from the brown seaweeds, tends to have its own idea as to how it will behave, and is not always compliant with my wishes! Whilst I have the greatest respect for strong willed paper, it does make it difficult sometimes!
