Press Release

The seventh Holland Paper Biennial will be on show in the
Museum Rijswijk and CODA Apeldoorn from 10 June till 14 September 2008

The Holland Paper Biennial 2008 consists of an exhibition of work by international paper 
artists in both museums and a publication entitled Pure Paper. As has become customary, a 
book and paper shop will be open for the duration of the exhibition in Museum Rijswijk and 
the traditional paper fair will take place on Sunday 14 September from 13.00 till 17.00.

Opening times Museum Rijswijk: Tuesday - Sunday van 12.00 -17.00; Monday closed.

The exhibition
During the seventh Holland Paper Biennial there will again be an extremely varied body of 
artworks on display made from paper. Although the artists often use the same materials and 
techniques for their work, the results are surprisingly different. 
Both Long-Bin Chen, who originates from Taiwan, and Oskar from the Netherlands use paper 
from telephone directories for their sculptures. Chen, who transforms a pile of directories 
into the head of the Buddha, wants to affect a union between East and West through his work: 
Buddha as the guardian of the millions of inhabitants of a Western metropolis. In contrast, 
Oskar’s life-size papier-mâché figures with skins of telephone directory paper are rooted in 
Western iconography of the Bible and Greek mythology. 
It is Noriko Yamaguchi who employs koyori, the traditional Japanese technique of twisting 
strips of paper into strings, at this year’s paper biennial in her loosely woven floral nets. 
In the work of the Italian Ivano Vitali, who uses the same technique, the effect is rather 
more robust. His cords of newspaper are rolled up tightly into gigantic balls of yarn ready 
to be made into disproportionate pieces of knitting with metre-long knitting needles. The 
Dutchman Richard Mens also works with newspaper. From wads of paper glued together he models 
larger than life, voluptuous female figures.
A number of artists employ the thin and extremely strong paper from Asia made from mulberry 
plants in their work. Jin-Woo Lee from South Korea layers sheets of ink drenched hanji paper 
on top of each other between which he inserts charcoal, earth and pigments. His pieces evoke 
images of landscapes seen through frosted-glass windows. His compatriot 
Yu-Mi Kim uses the traditional Korean technique of hammering layers of hanji paper into 
material as strong as leather, which she uses for her airy sculptures. The transparent 
property of mulberry paper is precisely what Nikki van Es from the Netherlands exploits in 
her world of magnified, imaginary organic forms created using the Japanese variant taizan 
and watercolours. 
Cutting and tearing is currently ‘hot’ in the world of paper. Chris Natrop from the United 
States cuts organic shapes freehand from large sheets of paper to create complete installations. 
Three artists from Germany employ the technique of cutting and folding. 
Stefan Saffer creates colourful compositions by applying paint to both sides of paper and cutting 
into it and folding it. Today’s visual culture is the main theme in the work of 
Petra Ellert. She transforms greatly enlarged reproductions of pictorial icons from the flat plane 
into three-dimensional images. Sculptress Annette Wimmershoff, on the other hand, applies the 
cutting and folding techniques to corrugated cardboard for her abstract sculptures and wall objects. 
Although she covers the objects afterwards with Japanese paper and pigment the flute structure of 
the cardboard remains visible. 
American Nancy Cohen is one of the artists at this biennial who makes her own paper. She covers 
discarded objects with a thin layer of paper and then assembles them into sculptures, which are 
open to a wide variety of interpretations. 
      The work of British artist Patricia Hodson introduces computer-imaging technology to paper 
      art for the first time. The printed digital images are combined with specially treated abaca 
      (paper made from Manila hemp – a relative of the banana plant) to create translucent collages. 

The work of 27 international paper artists will be on show at the 2008 Holland Paper Biennial. 
In Museum Rijswijk a wide selection of pieces by 22 artists will be presented in all the exhibition 
rooms, while the CODA Apeldoorn will be exhibiting the monumental work and installations of 21 artists.  

Museum Rijswijk:
Patrica Hodson (England), Kakuko Ishii (Japan), Yu-Mi Kim (South Korea), Jin-Woo Lee (South Korea), 
Chris Natrop (United States) and Maya Portner (Hawaii)

Both museums: 
Célio Braga (the Netherlands/Brazil), Long-Bin Chen (Taiwan/United States), 
Nancy Cohen (United States), Petra Ellert (Germany), Claudie Hunzinger (France), Nikki van Es (the Netherlands), 
Angela Glajcar (Germany), Joan Hall (United States) Winifred Lutz (United States), Richard Mens (the Netherlands), 
Oskar (the Netherlands), Stefan Saffer (Germany), Lyndi Sales (South Africa), Ivano Vitali (Italy), 
Annette Wimmershoff (Germany) and Noriko Yamaguchi (Japan/Germany)		

CODA Apeldoorn:
Ed Pien (Taiwan/Canada), Georgia Russell (England), Annette Sauermann (Germany),
Howard Silverman (England) and Ferry Staverman (the Netherlands)

Grand paper fair
To mark the conclusion of the 2008 Holland Paper Biennial, a grand paper fair will be held on Sunday 
14 September from 13.00 until 17.00 on the premises and in the grounds of Museum Rijswijk and in the Oude Kerk 
(Old Church) opposite the museum. Countless artists, papermakers and paper merchants from the Netherlands and 
other countries will be displaying and selling their wares. 

The book Pure Paper
A special publication entitled Pure Paper will accompany the seventh Holland Paper Biennial. The compiler of 
the book is the well-known paper artist Peter Gentenaar, who has gathered together articles about the origin 
of paper. Elaine Koretsky recounts her journeys across Asia searching for ancient techniques with which to 
make paper. Sinologist Jacob Eyferth complements this with his description of a Chinese papermakers village. 
The German Helen Hiebert, Rogier Uitenboogaart from Japan and the paper artists Pat Torley and Peter 
Gentenaar here in the Netherlands talk about making their own paper. In addition there are articles about 
the intricate relationships that make up the building blocks of paper, the quest for alternative fibres, 
including paper made by wasps, and paper and the environment. 
The book also presents the artworks exhibited by the paper artists taking part in the Biennial, sometimes 
accompanied by a sample of the paper they use for their work.

Publisher Pure Paper (Dutch/English): Uitgeverij Compres, Leiden; designer: Loes Schepens The Hague. 
ISBN number: 978-90-73803-08-4; Purchase price:  € 59.95

For more information about the book Pure Paper	 	www.hollandpapierbiennale.nl 

For more information about the exhibition:
Museum Rijswijk  070 390 36 17				www.museumryswyk.nl
CODA Apeldoorn  055 5268 400				www.coda-apeldoorn.nl