Thinking Career Change? How About Papermaking?

Timothy Barrett, internationally recognized master craftsman and paper historian, states that "the study of books can give us an entirely new picture of the development of all disciplines and of human knowledge in the broadest sense." He asks, "how can the material study of books and paper reveal new things about our cultural heritage, about history, that we wouldn't otherwise be able to learn?" For example, he discovered that papermakers in the 15th century were trying to make imitation parchment instead of regular paper, most likely as a way for papermakers to cut scribes out of the equation by making imitation hand-copied manuscript books. Early mass production!

Combining the skills of artist, ethnographer, scientist, and historian, Barrett documents and demonstrates centuries-old hand-papermaking practices that may otherwise be lost. As the founding director of the papermaking facilities at the University of Iowa Center for the Book — the only academic program in the United States that focuses on producing traditional Western- and Japanese-style papers and teaching-related techniques — he has trained a generation of papermakers to create conservation-sound paper.

He says that in order for scholars in the field to utilize their knowledge of different papers and book production techniques, they need to get hands on experience in the book arts: paper-making, letterpress printing, bookbinding and calligraphy.

Believe it or not, this is a REAL job with practical implications. Barrett and his co-workers recently fabricated the handmade archival paper used to re-house the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, and the Constitution as part of the “Charters of Freedom Re-encasement Project.” They created a layer of white paper to be placed under important documents in their display cases. The paper supports the parchment of the original documents, "provides a white background for better viewing, and helps stabilize the internal humidity in the encasement."

This goes WAY beyond the childhood experiment of turning dryer lint into paper. If you'd like to learn more check out Barrett's Japanese Papermaking: Traditions, Tools, and Techniques.