Watercourse

Robert C. Williams Museum of Papermaking
Georgia Tech University, Atlanta GA
"Paper Narratives" Exhibition 

Cotton muslin fabric, cochineal dye, abaca

22 X 10 feet

2015

This installation consists of 22 yards of hand dyed fabric with individual 8 X 8 inch sheets of stenciled abaca couched onto its surface. The dye in the fabric is fugitive, and as soon as it is re-wet it activates. The paper draws in the pigment and, as it dries clings to the fabric and shrinks creating a puckered surface. The paper is strong enough to give form to the fabric, and to bridge gaps between fabric panels. The color shifts from purple to orange reflect the PH of the water in Santa Fe where the fabric was dyed, and Atlanta, where the installation was produced.