Week 16 - Episode 89 - Playing with Paper

Paper is incredibly versatile. We use it for books, money, tissues, wrapping and much much more.

But we also use it for creativity, and play.

Here are some suggestions for weekend activities around paper.

Collage

Paper is of course very suitable for collage, so why not create a collage of ‘paper in your life’ this weekend?

Cut, tear and otherwise collect little pieces of all the paper in your life.

The best way to do this is not using normal glue, but acrylic medium. This will stop the paper from swelling up and leaking colour, and if you use gloss medium it will also add a nice shine.

Build

Paper may seem flimsy, but if you use it in the right way it can actually create pretty solid support.

Why not try building the highest possible tower using only 4 sheets of A4 paper?

Fold it, roll it up, cut it into pieces and then recombine it and reach for the sky.

Create your own

If you’ve never created your own paper do try it - it’s incredibly fun and rewarding.

You can get the necessary supplies from a craft store, and this WikiHow explains the entire process:

https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Paper

Write, paint, draw, sketch on recycled paper

Over the past week you’ve become much more aware of how much paper actually goes through your hands during the week. How could you use that to get creative?

Experiment with sketching on envelopes, painting on packaging, drawing on paper bags, etc.

Have lots of fun playing with paper this weekend, and do share your creations on Twitter or Instagram using the hashtag #kramerseye.

Listen to today’s podcast

Week 16 - Episode 88 - Over or Under?

Paper has many lofty uses, but today we’re focusing on the bottom.

If you’ve been following Kramer’s Eye for a while it should come as no surprise that again, the Chinese were the first to use papers to clean their behinds.

In 589 AD the scholar-official Yan Zhitui (531–591) wrote about the use of toilet paper:

“Paper on which there are quotations or commentaries from the Five Classics or the names of sages, I dare not use for toilet purposes.”

In Europe, in the 18th century this was exactly what people did with writing they didn’t approve of - they wiped their bum with it.

A 1792 French Revolutionary caricature, depicting the French population using the Monarchist  Brunswick Manifesto as toilet paper.

Toilet paper as we know it dates back to the mid 19th century, when inventor Joseph Gayetty introduced his ‘medicated paper for the water closet’.

In the early days of loo roll people used it at their own peril: as late as the 1930s, a selling point of the Northern Tissue company was that their toilet paper was "splinter free".

And since the invention of the toilet roll holder the world has been divided in two camps: should it go over or under?

Today we’re focusing on paper that cleans.

Toilet paper, tissue paper, kitchen paper.

It might surprise you but these can make gorgeous subjects for still lifes - especially if you use natural lighting.

Capture the cleansing paper in your life and share it using the hashtag #kramerseye on Twitter or Instagram.

Listen to today’s podcast.

Week 16 - Episode 87 - It's a wrap

Once you start looking out for paper in your life you’ll notice that, despite all our technological advances and ecological challenges, it still is everywhere. 

The pretty postcards we buy usually come in similar sized paper bags.

We store our stuff in corrugated paper boxes.

We gladly wrap our gifts in gorgeous paper.

As with many other inventions, this started in China, and coincided with the birth of another clever paper wrap: the envelope. The government used hemp paper to create a kind of envelope used to wrap monetary gifts for officials. A clever device to keep the nature (and amount) of your gift hidden from prying eyes. 

Today, look for packaging and wrapping paper.

Capture those envelopes (old and new), wrapping sheets, boxes, paper bags, cheese paper…and don’t forget to share them use the hashtag #kramerseye on Twitter or Instagram.

Listen to today’s podcast

Week 16 - Episode 86 - Show me the money

Paper has been used for banknotes since the 7th century. As usual, the Chinese were way ahead of the rest of the world. Paper money took another 10 centuries to take off in Europe. Below you can see a picture of the first European bank note, issued in Sweden.

But paper was used as a placeholder for value much earlier. The Dutch East India Company issued bonds. And there is evidence of cheques being used in India as early as the 4th century B.C.

VOC Bond

It’s fascinating when you think about it - paper, made of wood pulp, can be used instead of the actual money. And as long as we believe it can be exchanged the system works. When it collapses, we get bank runs and the paper returns to its initial state of being worthless.

Today, look for paper that represents value.

Not just bank notes but vouchers, coupons, tickets.

Anything made out of paper that can be exchanged for something of value.

Share your finds on Twitter or Instagram using the hashtag #kramerseye.

Listen to today’s podcast