Paper Traces

## Reto This project investigates the material, structural, and aesthetic potential of recycled paper pulp. Working with materials that are impermanent, it explores how recycled pulp can be transformed into structurally viable and conceptually meaningful forms. Through a research-through-making process, the project examines the physical behaviour and expressive potential of the pulp. Food-based composites are used as coating materials to strengthen structures and create layered surface colour and texture. Through drying, compression, and reconstruction, the material gradually shifts from a soft, unstable state into a formed, stable structure. The work is designed for impermanence. When the structures reach the end of their life, the materials can simply degrade and return to the cycle they came from. ## Proceso The project aims to use office paper as a material to make forms, texture and convey narratives. I wanted this process to symbolise a renewal for the life of used office paper, into something more nuanced and aesthetic; something that extends the life of this paper that is seemingly at the end of its life. ## Resultado ‘Paper Traces’ explores how discarded office paper can be transformed from a single-use material into forms that hold structural and conceptual significance. Through a process of recycling, hand molding, natural pigmentation and creating food based composites, the project emphasises the physical, aesthetic and expressive potential of paper pulp as a material. This project showcases that material can hold beyond its initial intended use. Material can hold the capacity to embody narratives, form texture, colour and structure. The processes of shrinking, cracking, warping and reconstruction are central to the work, they serve as visible traces of the making process- adding to the natural uniqueness of the work. Rather than concealing imperfections, the project embraces these qualities as reflection themes of transience, transformation and renewal. The making process of the project aimed to have a low-tech methodology and readily available materials. This was done with the intention of challenging the assumption of having to use complex machinery and technology in contemporary art and material experimentation in artistic practice. To conclude, ‘Paper Traces’ proposes a different lens of viewing waste- instead of a material at the end of its life, it is seen as a resource with the capacity for renewal, transformation and meaning. The project reimagines discarded paper as a medium to communicate conceptual narratives, reflecting impermanence and cyclical nature of material.