"The Art of Paper" with artist Ray Tomasso
Thursday, November 10, 2011, Norlin Library Commons
Tomasso's talk, "The Art of Paper" is a slide show presentation on the technical and cultural history of this remarkable material and its application in Tomasso's work. The presentation includes a discussion of the history of paper in the preservation and transmission of knowledge and as an industrial material of great plasticity and strength.
Two works by the artist have been purchased by the University of Colorado Boulder Libraries. The site-specific pieces, each measuring approximately 8 by 4 feet, are entitled "Red Skies" and "Love in Spring." They are mounted on each side of the unique interior bay window on the second floor of the Norlin Library.
The site-specific pieces are included in a larger exhibition of Tomasso's recent work now on display in Norlin Library. The show, entitled "The Art of Paper," features recent work by the CU alumni in the first floor southwest Stoa Gallery and second floor southwest Science Alcove Gallery. The exhibit runs through spring of 2012. A forthcoming catalog prepared in conjunction with the exhibit discusses the artist and his work from the 1970s to the present.
Tomasso's work is also currently on display in a one-man show at Vertical Arts, 690 Marketplace Plaza, Steamboat Springs
Ray Tomasso is one of an international group of fine artists who have explored handmade paper as a sculptural medium since the late 1960s. He received his MFA from CU Boulder in 1979, and has traveled the world studying paper history, materials and techniques. In Düren, Germany in 1986, he co-founded the International Association of Hand Papermakers and Paper Artists (IAPMA), the world's leading organization of paper artists.
Tomasso's art is created from recycled, biodegradable and renewable plant fibers using historic European hand-papermaking techniques. The University Libraries ScriptaLab recently videotaped Tomasso in his studio demonstrating and explaining the papermaking process. One video provides a rare opportunity to view the production of handmade paper. In a second video, the artist provides additional background on papermaking history and technology. In a third, Tomasso describes his long career exploring paper as a fine art medium. The videos can be viewed at www.ScriptaLab.org or on this CU Boulder Libraries YouTube channel.
The exhibit and event are sponsored by the University Libraries ScriptaLab, Friends of the Libraries, UCB Graduate Committee on the Arts & Humanities, CU President's Fund for the Humanities, CU Art Museum, and the Book Arts League.
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