Home on the Mountain


2018, mixed media, 11” x 12” x 3”


Home on the Mountain-Inkless 


2018, inkless print on handmade paste paper, 10.25” x 13”
This piece is based on a Chinese poem that translates to “Home on the Mountain.” I created a piece from the poem’s descriptions of the many unique characters who live in a house on the mountain. First, I explored using different materials, such as yarn, fabric, tape, and glue, as well as manipulating these materials by folding and overlapping them to create different textures on five collagraph plates. Then, I ran them through a press with silver to achieve the embossed look. I chose a doll bed frame to allude to the ideas of home and support present in the poem, although a bed is not directly mentioned. I explored different ways to display the five collagraph plates but ultimately decided to suspend three above the bed frame and attach two below for a more dynamic composition that makes the eye travel forwards and back


This piece includes two inkless prints created from the collagraph plates in the previous "Home on the Mountain" 3D piece. I ran the collagraph plates through a printing press with the moist paper to achieve this embossed look. I preferred the inkless prints because the depth and texture are seen through the shadows that are created. I mounted these prints on a paste paper background that I created myself. I chose to leave the raw edges on the prints because it ties in with the handmade, natural feel of the paste paper. For the paste paper, I used plastic pieces cut in different shapes and edges to carve different textures and shapes on the paper. This way I achieved a variety of line qualities and directions.