top of page

FOURTH PORTAL

GATEWAY TO THE FOURTH INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION

FP GE QR Code .png

FP GE VOP Kaori Homma_Under the Heavens no16_ Aburidashi.jpg

ⓒ Kaori Homma

VERSATILITY OF PAPER

The Response

Copying a 1953 call-out to artists by papermaker Bowater to respond to the versatility of paper, the Fourth Portal received 65 responses from artists in Gravesend and from across the country.

Newspaper

To celebrate the quality of response to the Versatility of Paper call out, the Fourth Portal created a special edition newspaper highlighting each piece of work submitted. Articles include an interview with the former head papermaker at the Greenhithe Empire Paper Mills and how the paper industry shaped the destiny of Gravesend and Northfleet.

We ordered 2,000 newspapers to be printed and distributed around Kent and London.

The Call-Out

Print Artist-in-Resident Dawn Cole spotted the Bowater call-out in an old print magazine from 1953.

There were 170 requests for us to provide vintage paper, with 65 responses returned by the 31 August 2023 deadline.

The work is now on display at the Fourth Portal in Gravesend, with a newspaper momento to follow and a discussion of touring the work.

October 2023

Click image for details and enlarge

Having received the Green and Sons paper, the strength and feel of it reminded me of the tapa I had come across in the Pacific islands and how so many cultures in the world have developed their own methods and materials in papermaking.

Tapa is made from mulberry bark. It is stripped, soaked in water and beaten with mallets to develop a paper 'cloth' in huge sheets, dried on the ground and then decorated with traditional designs in natural paint and dyes. The tapa is often used for ceremonial outfits.

I decided to make a waistcoat, out of the two types of paper and to see how they compared for an item of clothing.

The tapa is from Tonga and the cotton paper from India - made with a process similar to that used by Green and Sons at Hayle Mill until they closed in 1987.
Both were able to be stitched and turned out, although the tapa held it's own a little better than the cotton paper.

The waistcoat is made to an early nineteenth century design which John Green, the first Mill owner, may have worn in 1815, so I included Hayle Mill watermark designs on the lining to complement the traditional Tongan designs on the outer part.

The quotation in the pockets is from M. Scott Peck, who wrote 'The Road less travelled'

"Share our Similarities, Celebrate our Differences"

This artwork is drawn on a vintage sample produced by the Whatman Papermill in Kent. It depicts the unique surface texture of the mould-made rough paper.

Paper manufacturer, W.S. Hodgkinson and Co., Ltd, were based at the paper mill at Wookey Hole in Somerset from 1860 until 1950. Paper production finally ceased at the mill in 1972.

During the 1970s, Gerry Cottle's famous touring circus featured wild animal acts including tigers.

In 2004, Cottle sold all his circus interests, bought the Wookey Hole Caves and the mill and set up a circus school. By then the tigers were a distant memory.

Tiger: 300gsm WSH mould made, cotton rag, gelatine sized paper

Background: 250gm Fabriano UNICA printmaking paper

Restoration and Repair: A Handbook for Use at Home by Michele Brown was published in 1978 as part of the popular Teach Yourself Books series.
Teach Yourself books have been published by English Universities
Press/Hodder & Stoughton since 1938. They cover all sorts of subjects, languages, crafts and activities.
The cover of this copy has been repaired, at home, using archival glue and Barcham Green Experimental Book Repair paper. Barcham Green papers were handmade at Hayle Mill in Kent from the early 1800s until the mill ceased production in 1987. This paper was first produced in 1972.

This small watercolour is a tiny memorial to Hayle Mill in Maidstone - the water powered paper mill on whose vintage paper it is painted.

Maidstone had so many mills it was known as the Paper City of the County; its river system and very hard water being conducive to the industry.

During its 130 year productive lifetime time [1857- 1987] Hayle Mill remained in the possession of the Green family. In 2010 it was turned into apartments.

I chose this format as Hayle Mill always retained its reputation for high quality paper and was the official paper of the Watercolour Society. Its highest accolade being that Turner chose to use Hale Mill paper as one of his watercolour papers.

Some Hayle Mill papers are still available today, much sought after by artists and restorers.

This piece is based on Turkey Mill, J. Whitman’s paper mill. In this instance the building has been reimagined being reclaimed by the trees that created the family’s fame and fortune.

Turkey Mill

This piece is based on Turkey Mill, J. Whitman’s paper mill. In this instance the building has been reimagined being reclaimed by the tress that created the family’s fame and fortune.

Chromatography

The Whatman Filter papers took me back to a chemistry lesson at Secondary School and how a chromatography experiment filled me with excitement at seeing coloured inks separate into their component colours before my very eyes.

This memory reminded me how things are not always what they seem and when thinking about this in terms of my residency at Fourth Portal it brings to mind how AI and things generated with AI are an amalgamation of many things from a multitude of sources and that knowing those sources are important in verifying the validity, much the same as any reference source used in a final work.

For the Versatility of Paper project I decided to recreate my Secondary School experiment and identify the source colours used to create the black ink in my felt pen.

This origami ‘masu box’ represents a delivery box. It’s filled with examples of the uses for J Whatman's wove paper. A watercolour, a written deed loan, a print and a painting with layers scratched off.

James Whatman created wove paper in the 1750’s, at Turkey mill, Maidstone, Kent.

This sculpture is made from a deed loan imitation parchment.

Sale boats water colours

Jahan Gerrard
Play

I used marks and strokes of red watercolour paint to explore this tiny rectangular space in a playful way.

Gregory Daines BA(Hons) MA

I received one piece of Hayle Mill hot pressed paper 14 x 10cm
I created a 3 layer cutout of this material. Styalisd plant with beatle. Adheasive used is UHU. Mounted on black card stock.
Wing
Beatle body and leaves
Background leaves

Hand prints by Riley, 6 and Lucien, 3.

Rubbings of UK Amusement tokens | Matthew Dowell

Eye by Kitty

I mainly use paper to Print, Draw, Collage, make Notes, and make Lists...and therefore I mostly use paper to make Art, Express, Communicate, Preserve, Organise.

In this case, using the J Whatman Creswick Paper has also allowed me to Dream, Experiment, have Fun and look after my Wellbeing.

Thank you x
@artkushag

Detector Paper
Paper chemical Agent No1 MK2

Blue Peter Flag cyanotype.

Thread & pencil
based on a magnified section of bamboo, stitched on bamboo paper.

Passing cargo ship, ink on paper

Swimming Linocut.| Liz Kelleher
A relief print
This lino cut is part of a group of four, originally designed to print randomly or together creating larger images on paper.
The fish were designed with no dominant dorsal fins so that they could be printed swimming in any direction. Again the dots were printed individually using the end of a cotton bud.

River Linocut | Liz Kelleher [21]

A relief print I made this small lino cut block to print onto fabric and create a repeating pattern.

The dots are printed individually using the end of a wooden skewer or a cotton bud.

Wasp Cell Map | Jane Jobling [22] Recently I have been making sculpture from paper that is informed by how different wasps make their nests. I aim to make my work more sustainable and to engage my audience in a dialogue about the vital role that wasps play in our environment.

Paper can be made from many materials and I was particularly pleased when my sample of paper was Whatman Deed Loan Imitation Parchment. Parchment was originally made from animal skin, particularly goat, sheep or cow but this imitation parchment is made primarily from wood pulp. Using every scrap of the paper provided, I have based my artwork on the cells of a wasp nest and appropriately wasps chew up wood to make the papery components of their nest. A loan deed agreement is a transaction between two parties who want different things and within a stipulated amount of time. In a loan deed between me and a nest of wasps, I would loan them a corner of my attic or garden shed and in return they would pollinate my garden and eat the pests. They would promise to leave within one year.

Although my artwork can seem quite varied, for the past twenty years I have been continuously making work about boundaries, edges and surfaces to explore enclosing and revealing space. Material exploration and shadows created within the work, or produced as light passes through them, play key roles in the sculptures and drawings.

Recently I have been making sculpture from paper that is informed by how different wasps make their nests. I aim to make my work more sustainable and to engage my audience in a dialogue about the vital role that wasps play in our environment.

Paper Doll | Liz Howe

Paint it? Ink it? Fold it? No, I went back to basics and used it for something I do most weeks. I made a shopping list

Pen on paper

I visited woken Hole as a child. What a coincidence that my sheet of paper came from the place where I remember making a piece of paper 50 odd years ago.

What to do with said piece of paper?

Paint it? Ink it? Fold it? No, I went back to basics and used it for something I do most weeks. I made a shopping list

Linocut Blind Embossing | Hugh Ribbans [25]

Scroll and Click image for details and enlarge

Having received the Green and Sons paper, the strength and feel of it reminded me of the tapa I had come across in the Pacific islands and how so many cultures in the world have developed their own methods and materials in papermaking.

Tapa is made from mulberry bark. It is stripped, soaked in water and beaten with mallets to develop a paper 'cloth' in huge sheets, dried on the ground and then decorated with traditional designs in natural paint and dyes. The tapa is often used for ceremonial outfits.

I decided to make a waistcoat, out of the two types of paper and to see how they compared for an item of clothing.

The tapa is from Tonga and the cotton paper from India - made with a process similar to that used by Green and Sons at Hayle Mill until they closed in 1987.
Both were able to be stitched and turned out, although the tapa held it's own a little better than the cotton paper.

The waistcoat is made to an early nineteenth century design which John Green, the first Mill owner, may have worn in 1815, so I included Hayle Mill watermark designs on the lining to complement the traditional Tongan designs on the outer part.

The quotation in the pockets is from M. Scott Peck, who wrote 'The Road less travelled'

"Share our Similarities, Celebrate our Differences"

This artwork is drawn on a vintage sample produced by the Whatman Papermill in Kent. It depicts the unique surface texture of the mould-made rough paper.

Paper manufacturer, W.S. Hodgkinson and Co., Ltd, were based at the paper mill at Wookey Hole in Somerset from 1860 until 1950. Paper production finally ceased at the mill in 1972.

During the 1970s, Gerry Cottle's famous touring circus featured wild animal acts including tigers.

In 2004, Cottle sold all his circus interests, bought the Wookey Hole Caves and the mill and set up a circus school. By then the tigers were a distant memory.

Tiger: 300gsm WSH mould made, cotton rag, gelatine sized paper

Background: 250gm Fabriano UNICA printmaking paper

Restoration and Repair: A Handbook for Use at Home by Michele Brown was published in 1978 as part of the popular Teach Yourself Books series.
Teach Yourself books have been published by English Universities
Press/Hodder & Stoughton since 1938. They cover all sorts of subjects, languages, crafts and activities.
The cover of this copy has been repaired, at home, using archival glue and Barcham Green Experimental Book Repair paper. Barcham Green papers were handmade at Hayle Mill in Kent from the early 1800s until the mill ceased production in 1987. This paper was first produced in 1972.

This small watercolour is a tiny memorial to Hayle Mill in Maidstone - the water powered paper mill on whose vintage paper it is painted.

Maidstone had so many mills it was known as the Paper City of the County; its river system and very hard water being conducive to the industry.

During its 130 year productive lifetime time [1857- 1987] Hayle Mill remained in the possession of the Green family. In 2010 it was turned into apartments.

I chose this format as Hayle Mill always retained its reputation for high quality paper and was the official paper of the Watercolour Society. Its highest accolade being that Turner chose to use Hale Mill paper as one of his watercolour papers.

Some Hayle Mill papers are still available today, much sought after by artists and restorers.

Chromatography

The Whatman Filter papers took me back to a chemistry lesson at Secondary School and how a chromatography experiment filled me with excitement at seeing coloured inks separate into their component colours before my very eyes.

This memory reminded me how things are not always what they seem and when thinking about this in terms of my residency at Fourth Portal it brings to mind how AI and things generated with AI are an amalgamation of many things from a multitude of sources and that knowing those sources are important in verifying the validity, much the same as any reference source used in a final work.

For the Versatility of Paper project I decided to recreate my Secondary School experiment and identify the source colours used to create the black ink in my felt pen.

This origami ‘masu box’ represents a delivery box. It’s filled with examples of the uses for J Whatman's wove paper. A watercolour, a written deed loan, a print and a painting with layers scratched off.

James Whatman created wove paper in the 1750’s, at Turkey mill, Maidstone, Kent.

This sculpture is made from a deed loan imitation parchment.

Sale boats water colours

Gregory Daines BA(Hons) MA

I received one piece of Hayle Mill hot pressed paper 14 x 10cm
I created a 3 layer cutout of this material. Styalisd plant with beatle. Adheasive used is UHU. Mounted on black card stock.
Wing
Beatle body and leaves
Background leaves

Hand prints by Riley, 6 and Lucien, 3.

Rubbings of UK Amusement tokens | Matthew Dowell

Eye by Kitty

I mainly use paper to Print, Draw, Collage, make Notes, and make Lists...and therefore I mostly use paper to make Art, Express, Communicate, Preserve, Organise.

In this case, using the J Whatman Creswick Paper has also allowed me to Dream, Experiment, have Fun and look after my Wellbeing.

Thank you x
@artkushag

Detector Paper
Paper chemical Agent No1 MK2

Blue Peter Flag cyanotype.

Thread & pencil
based on a magnified section of bamboo, stitched on bamboo paper.

Passing cargo ship, ink on paper

Swimming Linocut.| Liz Kelleher
"Swimming"
A relief print
This lino cut is part of a group of four, originally designed to print randomly or together creating larger images on paper.
The fish were designed with no dominant dorsal fins so that they could be printed swimming in any direction. Again the dots were printed individually using the end of a cotton bud.

River Linocut | Liz Kelleher [21]
"River"
A relief print I made this small lino cut block to print onto fabric and create a repeating pattern.

The dots are printed individually using the end of a wooden skewer or a cotton bud.

Wasp Cell Map | Jane Jobling [22] Recently I have been making sculpture from paper that is informed by how different wasps make their nests. I aim to make my work more sustainable and to engage my audience in a dialogue about the vital role that wasps play in our environment.

Paper can be made from many materials and I was particularly pleased when my sample of paper was Whatman Deed Loan Imitation Parchment. Parchment was originally made from animal skin, particularly goat, sheep or cow but this imitation parchment is made primarily from wood pulp. Using every scrap of the paper provided, I have based my artwork on the cells of a wasp nest and appropriately wasps chew up wood to make the papery components of their nest. A loan deed agreement is a transaction between two parties who want different things and within a stipulated amount of time. In a loan deed between me and a nest of wasps, I would loan them a corner of my attic or garden shed and in return they would pollinate my garden and eat the pests. They would promise to leave within one year.

Although my artwork can seem quite varied, for the past twenty years I have been continuously making work about boundaries, edges and surfaces to explore enclosing and revealing space. Material exploration and shadows created within the work, or produced as light passes through them, play key roles in the sculptures and drawings.

Recently I have been making sculpture from paper that is informed by how different wasps make their nests. I aim to make my work more sustainable and to engage my audience in a dialogue about the vital role that wasps play in our environment.

Paper Doll | Liz Howe

Linocut Blind Embossing | Hugh Ribbans [25]

Support

The creation of the Versatility of Paper newspaper was kindly supported by Gravesham Borough Council.

Autumn 2023

The Versatility of Paper call out was kindly supported by the Essex Cultural Diversity Project.

Summer 2023

bottom of page