I have always been attracted to all forms of fiber, especially paper. Creating with paper feels like dancing with a partner, the material itself leading me through a series of new steps. I start with an idea but give myself over to a process that is intuitive, and at the best of times, playful.
Images from nature – cracked rock walls, delicate spider webs, and the phases of the moon – are all forms and patterns I use as sources. Along with these references I want my work to have a strong physical presence that expands into multiple associations.
I push paper to extremes by folding, twisting, and dyeing it for long periods of time in buckets. I want to encourage unplanned consequences and end up with paper that looks aged, and highly textured. I then layer the sheets into works that suggest aerial views, or maps, or the surface of the earth.
I also make my own Japanese paper and am interested in the different characteristic of pulps. Some are coarse and thick, some creamy and smooth, some shrink dramatically when dry. After the long process of cooking, cleaning, and beating the mulberry branches, a fluffy long fibered pulp results. I dip weavings into the slurry of pulp and water to make lacy nets, or use it more traditionally for sheet forming.
Through the exposure to Asian materials, I have gravitated toward Japanese fiber traditions, with the emphasis on natural color and strong materiality. I often use the scroll format and employ stitching, weaving, and wrapping techniques that allow me to bridge the gap between craft traditions and those of fine art.
Watch an interview with Jennifer Davies on WTNH from May 2022.