Process and Research

The birth of a paper chamber pot

The process of making a double-walled chamber pot out of hanji using jiseung techniques (Santa Fe, 2012)

Whenever possible, I make the paper for my artwork. For more details on my paper and art making process, see:

  1. Hanji making The Plain Dealer feature by Gus Chan
  2. Hanji and duck making ideastream video produced by Dennis Knowles
  3. Hanji making, artwork, background video produced by ThinkTV
  4. Live papermaking demo on stage in Cleveland for ideastream
  5. Great Big Story video about making hanji as a woman in Korea

Videos of Korean masters:

  1. Shin Hyun-se in 2008 (now a national Intangible Cultural Property Holder [ICPH] of hanji making)
  2. Four Korean papermakers (2008–2009)
  3. Yoo Bae-geun in 2009 (retired from his work as provincial ICPH of hanji screen making)
  4. Na Seo-hwan in 2009, third-generation jiseung (paper basketry) master

Process of making hanji & studio:

  1. Aimee’s 2009 apprenticeship: basic steps for making hanji
  2. View from above for webal tteugi sheet formation technique (in Cleveland)
  3. Building the first hanji studio in North America at the Morgan Conservatory (2010)

Photos of research in Korea: 2008–2009 Fulbright research

Aimee’s Hanji studio

My current hanji studio is in a commercial building in South Euclid, Ohio, equipped for Korean and European papermaking. The studio also has tools for Japanese papermaking. You are welcome to visit by appointment.

The first hanji studio that I built (in 2010) is at the Morgan Conservatory and is equipped for two sizes of hanji making and has the first fully stainless-steel naginata in the U.S., custom built by David Reina. Other places that have incorporated a hanji vat into their studio spaces include Dieu Donné, Women’s Studio Workshop, Wells College Book Arts Center, and several private studios run by past students.

In my current studio, I make paper and artwork, teach, and train students, interns, and apprentices. I am particularly committed to supporting Korean diaspora students, including those with adoptee, multi-racial, international, and Korean as a second language backgrounds. Because Korea has no formal programs to learn hanji making in depth, especially for those who do not speak Korean, I provide this service by teaching a week-long hanji retreat every July and shorter intensive courses on single topics like jiseung, natural dyeing, and paper thread in the fall and/or spring. I also offer private sessions and workshops on request.

Hanji Retreat July 2022

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