Table of Contents
01
Radical Divination (an opera of augury through papermaking)
April 5, 2023 at BAMPFA, Berkeley, CA
Performative papermaking and real-time graphic-score creation.
02
Improvisational Papermaking Workshop (with Gun Nilsson)
November 18-19, 2022 at Kvarnbyns Handpappersbruk, Mölndal, Sweden
Performative papermaking workshop.
03
Improvisatory Score Printing (using handmade paper)
Spring 2022 – Winter 2023 at the San Francisco Center for the Book
Experiments toward real-time score production through improvisational letterpress printing.
04
Manuel pour un Nouveau Voisinage (Handbook for a New Neighborhood)
Spring – Summer 2022
A long-distance collaboration creating 3-dimensional graphic scores using handmade paper, linoleum prints, and origami.
01: Radical Divination
Radical Divination is a structured improvisation scored for two papermakers and an ensemble of six musicians.
During the performance, papermakers create paper-objects that are used as graphic scores by the musicians. The structure of the piece is modeled on historical divination practices (e.g., cards, cloud shapes, tea leaves, etc.) and explores how pareidolia—the perceptual tendency we have for imposing meaning on ambiguous or random visual stimuli—can be used as inspiration within an improvisational framework.
Photos from the rehearsal and soundcheck/setup
Papermakers
Michelle Wilson
Gino Robair
Divination Ensemble
Krys Bobrowski: Gliss Glass, Kelp Horn
Kyle Bruckmann: Oboe, English Horn
Tom Djll: Trumpet, Electronics
Cheryl Leonard: Natural-Object Instruments
John Shiurba: Guitar
Karen Stackpole: Gongs, Skatchbox
Radical Divination: Performance Artifacts
On the left are examples of the prompts used by the papermakers. I selected and printed 60 words that could be used as both a noun and a verb. The cards were shuffled and arranged in groups of 3 and 5 cards for each papermaker. Only 32 of the prompts appeared in the concert due to time constraints,
Below are some of the paper-objects created during the performance. They are displayed here in pairs to demonstrate how different each side of a page can be: one side shows the last layer of pulp laid down, whereas the other side shows the first layer that was couched.
02: Improvisational Papermaking Workshop (with Gun Nilsson)
November 14-23, 2022 at Kvarnbyns Handspapperbruk in Mölndal, Sweden
For this workshop, I created lists of prompts intended to inspire non-traditional approaches to the act of papermaking. Each paper-object was created using 3 to 5 prompts, with Gun and I alternating between two couching stations in order to create interventions with each other’s interpretations.
Curved Couching Board
The paper mill’s curved couching surfaces opened up a new level of expressivity as you rock the mold over the felted surface.
Paper as Score (front)
The final paper-object serves as a record of the papermaking process. In this photo, we see the papermaker’s final layer, which was the only viewable perspective when the wet paper is on the felt.
Paper as Score (back)
Once the paper-object dries, it can be removed from the felt to reveal a different perspective. Here, the first layer the papermaker put down is visible, with subsequent layers appearing below. Each of these views provides a different perspective of the page as a score.
03: Improvisatory Score Printing (on handmade paper)
These examples were printed on a Vandercook proof press at the San Francisco Center for the Book. Because the machines can only print one color at a time, the number of colors on a page represents a discrete number of events. I used blue tape to mark off the “area of play” on the print bed, which was based on the paper size.
The letterpress blocks I used are from the Center’s collection. Their arrangement on the page is either the result of open/free improvisation or done using chance operations. I only used alpha-numeric characters for prints that were intended for use by a vocalist.
04: Manual pour un Noveau Voisinage
These photos include examples of my handmade paper used as scores for the October 2022 exhibition “Manuel pour un Nouveau Voisinage” at Produit Rien, Montreal, QC, Canada. The collages produced during this pandemic-era postal collaboration includes linocut prints by Éric Normand (Canada) and origami-inspired paperfolding by Angélique Cormier (France).
Each of us assembled 3-dimensional graphic scores using our own work and the materials received from the others, photographed them for the exhibition, and then recorded solo interpretations that would accompany them in the gallery. During the exhibition, local improvisers were also invited to perform the scores in front on an audience. (Audio examples of the original solo interpretations be heard at this link: Music from handbook for a new neighborhood.)
