MELISSA J. CRAIG, JIM PERNOTT, SALLY MATIA: ARTISTS WORKING IN PAPER (A Watermarks 2012 Associated Exhibit)

Melissa J. Craig, originally from Cleveland, now resides in Chicago. Her medium of choice is paper made from fibers she processes and sometimes harvests herself. She works with handmade paper specifically for its minimal environmental impact, its utter versatility, its enormous variety and for its deceptive strength contrasted with its perceived fragility. Made from plants, it is a material derived directly from her conceptual catalysts, involving her physically as well as metaphorically in perpetual cycles that intrigue her. Melissa\u27s sculptural books are on a grand scale, sometimes in size, always in her use of color. All of her artwork connects you with the natural world like a solitary, slow walk through a magnificent forest where you observe natures decay and rebirth. Jim Pernotto of Youngstown,OH has been working with handmade paper since the 1970\u27s as one of the many mediums in his art. Featured in numerous publications, he has had an impressive array of his paper art exhibited in both solo and group exhibitions in theUnited States. The purpose of the current work is a search for a contemporary myth that will identify the individual not with their local tribe but with the planet; our glistening blue living space ship without borders. Sally Matia saw an exhibition of contemporary artists who had translated their painting sensibilities with paper pulp fibers while living inBostonin the early 1980s. She was so taken in by the color and texture and story of the pulp paintings that she wanted to start her own exploration. She had been casting with porcelain slips into plaster molds and thought that she could the same with paper pulp. Carriage House and Elaine Koretzky in Brookline Ma., were her first stops. It was a good move .. so much knowledge and materials to start her journey. Moving toCleveland, she continued working and exhibiting her artwork in cast handmade paper. Her recent pieces incorporate vintage cutter quilts into the casts of vintage dresses in handmade paper. This recent work is to honor the fiber work of women in the past and her own artistic path in handmade paper