When I saw the “Identification of East Asian Paper for Conservation” workshop, I began to review what I knew about the subject and decided I could benefit from further education on the matter. I signed up for the workshop hoping to become more confident in my understanding of East Asian papers and I was not disappointed. Besides, what is more exciting than dedicating three hours to talking about paper?
The aim of this workshop was to help participants recognize the characteristics that denote paper quality to aid them in selecting good quality East Asian papers that meet conservation standards.
Presentations
Megumi Mizumura, a paper conservator at The British Museum, presented first. In addition to providing historical context for Japanese, Chinese, and Korean papermaking, she went into great detail about the Japanese papermaking process. Mizumura’s presentation illustrated how different steps of the papermaking process may affect paper quality.
She revealed that some papers thought to be of good quality by conservators may actually be poor quality due to changes in fiber furnish and manufacturing processes. The fiber furnish may be a blend of low grade, cheap kozo from Thailand, wood pulp, or other plant fibers. (Thai kozo is the lowest grade kozo because it grows quickly causing the fibers to be less flexible and contain oils that are difficult to remove during the cooking process.) Aggressive chemical steps to quickly cook fibers and bleach pulp are also detrimental to papers, decreasing stability of the fibers after aging. Mizumura highlighted some important details for conservators to be cognizant of when selecting papers:
- the source of the kozo fiber–Japan, China, Thailand, or Paraguay
- preparation of the fibers–the degree of detail used to separate bark layers when preparing the fibers, hand-beaten or machine-beaten
- alkaline cooking processes used to prepare the fibers–wood ash, slaked lime, soda ash, or caustic soda
- bleaching processes–no bleaching, natural bleaching with sunlight, or chemical bleaching with chlorine based bleaches or hydrogen peroxide
- method of manufacture–handmade or machine made
- drying methods–wooden boards, stainless steel plates, or metal rollers
- Possible additives–sizing, fillers, dyes
Mizumura’s presentation provided conservators with a foundation for making better informed selections of papers for treatment.
Nancy Jacobi, head of The Japanese Paper Place (http://www.japanesepaperplace.com/), followed Mizumura’s presentation expanding upon Japanese papermaking. She emphasized the beauty of a well made sheet of paper and the endangered nature of the papermaking profession in Japan. Jacobi then discussed the introduction of East Asian papers to the West and their uses by artists and, later, conservators. She shared two recurring degradation issues observed during her work at Cape Dorset, Canada in identifying Japanese papers used for relief prints by the Inuit since the 1950s. Jacobi noted oil stains in the supports caused by oils leaching out of the fibers which is characteristic of Thai kozo. She also observed pervasive, small foxing spots in papers caused by the use of uncoated metal dryers to quickly dry finished sheets of paper. Jacobi’s observations reiterated the dangers of not knowing materials, and manufacturing processes of East Asian papers used for conservation. The changes in paper quality may be a reflection of the pressure on the dwindling number of papermakers to meet high demands for East Asian papers. Takao Moriki, third generation president of the Moriki Paper Company (http://morikipaper.co.jp/), was also present and supported the workshop material with knowledge of the subject gained from personal experience and research of these materials.
Paper Identification Exercise
During the hands-on portion of the workshop, we put our knowledge of East Asian papers and observation skills to the test. Using the sample books received for the workshop, we examined several samples at a time. Jacobi prompted our observations with questions requiring us to differentiate between some of the following characteristics:
- quality
- fiber furnishes
- fiber preparation
- cooking or bleaching processes used
- drying methods used
- handmade or machine made papers
- additives
Once we had done our best to distinguish the various characteristics of our samples, we checked our answers against the key provided. The answer key contained a detailed break down of the papers listing the name, the region it was from, fiber furnish with fiber origin and percentages for fiber blends, machine made or handmade, fiber preparation, cooking process, bleaching, drying methods, additives, weight, and original sheet dimensions. The workshop organizers also brought their study collection with many other samples of East Asian papers for us to examine in addition to those in our sample books. Additionally, discussions related to experiences in using East Asian papers were cultivated amongst workshop participants.
Below are images of some of the papers in our sample books that I find really interesting.
5-B Okawara from Ehime handmade with Thai kozo, bleached
8-D Matsuo Kozo from Fukuoka handmade with kozo and synthetic dye
11-C Xuan paper made at Red Star with tan tree and rice straw fiber
11-A Hanji made in Korea with kozo fibers
Conclusion
This workshop raises awareness for the necessity of thoroughly understanding the materials used for conservation treatments. The hands-on exercise was a good challenge and essential for learning the characteristics that mark good quality paper. The workshop provided a good foundation and clear direction for conservators to work towards mastering the identification of East Asian papers.
The information I learned through this workshop will be very useful for guiding my decisions when selecting papers in the future. I truly appreciated the organizers’ passion for East Asian papers. It was a pleasure to peruse the additional samples in the study collection while talking about paper with all workshop participants.