By definition, "paper" is a substance composed of macerated cellulose fibers suspended in a vat of water and then re-structured into sheets by means of a mould. To make paper is a relatively simple process. To make good paper is often the result of a lifetime of labor and learning.
What type of cellulose is used, where it is grown, how the fiber is broken down, the type of mould used, the method of getting the mould in and out of the water, and the way that the sheet is dried are the elements of the papermaker's art. This is where they begin. That is what determines what they then pass on to us.
This is what this website is about. This is where you begin. As the next artist, now it is your turn. Now you must paint, draw, print, cut, paste, fold, spindle, mutilate or perform whatever is fueled by your inspiration!
For those of you who are able to come to New York Central and actually see and touch the papers, nothing can match the experience. However, keep in mind that you'd have to be in the store many, many hours to be able to view as many of the papers shown on this website. As you browse through the site, you may come to realize that the possibilities we present to you can go from exciting to overwhelming. Either way, you win.
For those of you looking for decorative varieties, we recommend that whenever possible, you click on the actual thumbnails to enlarge the picture. We have, and are continuing to upload as many as possible all the time. If there are changes to be made, they will happen here in real time. No more waiting for the next catalogue to find out if something has been added or discontinued. If you simply must touch the paper, we have swatchbooks available, and a price list of those is available here.
Our brand new paper catalog is also available. If you require a copy, please email us or phone us at 1-212-473-7705.
UNDERSTANDING PAPER
*Assigning a specific use to a paper can be misleading and restrict the experimentation which is a likely necessity to determine the best paper for your purposes. To call one paper a "printmaking paper" means very little to the artist who prefers a softer, more absorbent sheet for their watercolor techniques or to another artist who prefers the same paper for pastel.
Here are some paper basic ideas and facts for you to consider.
FIBER CONTENT
The length of the broken-down fibers, their bulk, absorbency, the expansion and contraction that takes place when they are subjected to water are all factors that determine the finished sheet. Longer fibers, like cotton, flax and hemp, create a stronger network of interlocking fibers. That strength is especially important for sheets that will be folded, erased or stretched.
Shorter fibers like wood pulp or wheat straw add bulk and are less likely to stretch or contract, so they are excellent for techniques such as embossing.
Blending different fibers in different amounts imparts qualities derived from each of the fibers.
"Rag" refers to fibers that were originally spun into fabric before they were broken down into pulp for paper. This style of pulp has the longest fiber length and potentially, the greatest strength. Most papers today do not use "rag" in their composition, but rather use the raw fiber such as seed cotton.
Kozo and gampi come from the inner bark of shrubs. Once pounded and separated, they produce exceptionally long fibers and consequently, exceptionally strong sheets, even if they are very thin.
Most papers we carry do not use fibers without the addition of sizing. To say that a wood pulp paper with its shorter fibers is more absorbent than a cotton sheet with longer fibers is only accurate if both of those sheets are identical in every other way. In fact, a shorter fiber (which will absorb more water) can absorb more sizing, so it is possible that the wood pulp sheet will result in a harder, less absorbent material.
Fibers such as linen and gampi have a natural element that encases the fiber that acts as a type of sizing. Papers made of these will withstand certain techniques without additional sizing. However, as water eventually penetrates this casing, these fibers experience extreme expansion and contraction. For example, sheets made byCave Papers which are made on an 18" x 24" mould, measure as much as an inch smaller when we receive them. This style of paper will expand and contract dramatically each time it is subjected to moisture, even the humidity or dryness of the atmosphere.
One should never reject a paper because of some belief that onefiber is inferior to another. Modern papermakers have access to many resources and usually select the fiber based on desired results. It is much more important that a paper be neutral pH. Fiber has nothing to do with pH.
SIZING
Most "Western" papers you'll see on this website use some sort of sizing. Most "Asian" papers do not.
Traditionally, sizing is composed of starch, animal based glues (such as gelatine) or plastic polymers. Sizing actually repels water, so the amount added to the vat and/or applied after the sheets are formed will determine how much moisture will be absorbed and the expansion and contraction of the sheet.
Watercolor papers are not made to accept water, but to repel it. This allows for longer working time, keeping the integrity of the surface before fibers have time to react to the water in the paint.
Lightly sized or unsized papers absorb moisture evently and quickly, which makes them ideal for printing or techniques like sumi-e painting, where the gesture of the stroke and the load of the brush are to be "recorded" by the paper.
Wetting slightly sized sheets in one place and not another causes swelling of the fibers in those places, giving the sheet "hills and valleys" that are difficult to work on and require that the sheet be re-flattened by re-wetting the entire sheet and/or pressure.
Sizing can usually be removed by soaking the sheet in tepid or hot water.
Sizing can be added to a sheet either in the form of a surface sizing or dy dipping the paper into prepared size solution. Type of materials used for sizing depends on the desired results and ease of application.
METHOD OF MANUFACTURE
Although these descriptions are oversimplications and there is much variation within each category, generally speaking, sheets comparable in fiber and sizing will have the following characteristics:
Handmade Papers have little or no grain direction, the most interlocking fibers - providing greater strength, are softer and have more bulk because they are not subjected to extreme sources of heat or pressure
Mouldmade Papers have a distinct grain direction from the rotation of the cylinder machine. Because these machines run at a slow speed, the sheets will have good strength from interlocking fibers. Mouldmade papers are firmer and flatter than handmade papers because of the pressure used to dry and surface the sheets.
Machine made Papers have a pronounced grain direction with less interlocking fibers than handmade or mouldmade sheets and are very hard and flat because of the use of extreme heat and pressure to dry and surface the sheets.
WEIGHT/SURFACE/TEXTURE
When considering papers comparable to each other in fiber and sizing, heavier papers are relatively stronger and will withstand more handling and will buckle less.
Light weight papers are easier to fold and tear and have less "memory" of rolling. Paintings done on light weight sheets are also easier to flatten.
Papers with greater texture will dry more evenly without puddling because they have greater surface area that distributes moisture more evently across the surface.
Smooth sheets offer the greatest precision in drawing and painting, but the flatness of the surface is the most vulnerable and unforgiving when it comes to erasure or poor handling.
GRAMS VS POUNDS
Many people are confused by the fact that we use gram weights in our catalog, and on this website, instead of pounds. We do this because this system allows you to compare the weights of a given sheet without considering the size of the sheet. A 300 gsm paper is half the weight of a sheet that is 600 gsm or twice as heavy as one that is 150 gsm. Look at the gram weight of papers with which you are already familiar, and you will be able to compare those sheets to others that you see here.
The pound system that most artists are famliar with is the European system given to artists' watercolor papers. To say that a sheet is 140 pounds actually means that one ream (500 sheets) of that paper weighs 140 lbs. However, if the sheet size varies, so will its weight, even though it is the same paper. If the 140 pound sheet is 22" x 30", then that same paper, half that size would weigh 70 pounds. By only considering pound weights, customers are often tricked into buying the wrong sheet. For example, Arches 260 pound is much lighter than Arches 300 pound sinply because the 300 pound sheet in this case is 22" x 30", while the 260 pound sheet is 25½" x 40".
The commercial paper market uses a pound-based system using the "M" weight (or weight of 1,000 sheets) instead of the ream. This system is useful to determine weights, but one must know the basis size and the number of sheets in the carton before one can directly compare one sheet to another.
To determine pound weight from the gram weight you can use this formula:
Gram Weight x .267 x Square Inches of the Sheet ÷ 374 = Ream Weight
