Sustainability in the Pioneer Valley

Among our shared interests at Khandroling Paper Cooperative are the many faces of sustainability in Western Massachusetts where we are located.

One of the missions of  the handmade paper movement is to move away from wood based paper pulps towards fibers that can be cultivated or pulp made from recycled papers or recycled cotton "rags." Although handmade paper is primarily the provence of artists here in the US, nevertheless it is important to understand the enormous cost to the planet in the use of wood based pulps. Such practices are especially important for many countries where deforestation is an ecological disaster. Making handmade paper sustains the livelihood of whole villages in places like India and Nepal. We here at Khandroling Paper Cooperative believe that it can sustain us too. Our coop members offer their services for free and all courses are by donation. Some products are also by donation.

[Photo above: Kathleen recycling an old linen table cloth for the Hollander beater to make pulp]

Stone Soup Cafe
Beyond our focus on papermaking, there are many exciting initiatives happening in the valley.  One such initiative I love as a low-income senior is Bernie Glassman Roshi's inspired soup kitchen in Greenfeld called Stone Soup Cafe which provides a weekend nourishing meal. Every Saturday, they serve a kick-ass (excuse the expression) dynamic lunch (mostly vegan/gluten free) that is exquisitely prepared and presented. The entire venue is uplifted with tablecloths, wrapped cutlery, flowers, and candles. There is also live music with local musicians.  Bernie Glassman and his Peacekeeper's have established an environment that cultivates egalitarian principles and provides far more than just a meal. They also nourish through offering wellness services such as free acupunture, a family-friendly place to socialize, and an internship program to train unemployed individuals in food service.

Sitting at our table, we were graced with some interesting women who sat with us-- one a Basque/Apache young mother with a law degree from Harvard and her two kids; A South African elderly lady dressed elegantly in red and with long silver braids who spoke of her social activism for decades, and another woman--one of the main cooks for the day, who is a women's studies major at Mt. Holyoke College. At the next table were two young mothers passing out free samples of their medicinal herbal infusions for free made at their medicine farm.  I signed up to receive notice when they harvest a variety of herbs such nettles, red clover and oats. Their mission: "To bring medicine to the people."

Time Banking
Another innovative program I have discovered here in the Pioneer Valley is Time Banking, an international movement that takes simple bartering/trading to a sophisticated level creating supportive community service that functions on a non-cash basis where the only currency is Time. I am very excited about Khandroling Paper Cooperative joining the local Pioneer Valley Time Bank where we can offer local artists an opportunity to intern with us on special projects. Their Mission statement is meaningful and not unlike Stone Soup Cafe.

Valley Time Trade's mission is to: Connect people and unmet needs with untapped resources; Provide economic relief through access to alternative resources; Encourage increased community interaction, wherein people help themselves and others; Foster mutual respect for all individuals in a community and bridge gaps between existing barriers; and Promote equality, recognizing that all services are necessary to society and equally valuable.

As we explore more, I'll be reporting on other sustainable activities in the Pioneer Valley. If you have any organizations you would recommend, write me.

Jacqueline Gens
jacqueline.gens@gmail.com

Tibetan Calligraphy by Thrangu Rinpoche Khor Yug (The Environment)

 The calligraphy by Thrangu Rinpoche is located on a page of the EcoBuddhism website with a text by Thomas Berry, in his introduction to his book, The Dream of Earth.

One Stroke: On the Culture of Calligraphy by Jacqueline Gens

[Calligraphy by Chogyam Trungpa from Vajra Gallery]

I was first introduced to calligraphy practice through the late Tibetan master, Chogyam Trungpa (1939-1987), my first Buddhist teacher,  while studying and working at the Naropa University that he founded (then Institute ). Naropa, the first Buddhist inspired accredited college in the West favors a strong base in a variety of contemplative arts.  For me both calligraphy and poetics became a powerful practice about presence.   His introduction of calligraphy as “one Stroke” was based on the zen practice derived from traditional calligraphy in Japan. 

The following is excerpted from Wikipedia:

 Japanese calligraphy was influenced by, and influenced, Zen thought. For any particular piece of paper, the calligrapher has but one chance to create with the brush. The brush strokes cannot be corrected and even a lack of confidence will show up in the work. The calligrapher must concentrate and be fluid in execution. The brush writes a statement about the calligrapher at a moment in time (see Hitsuzendo, the Zen way of the brush). Through Zen, Japanese calligraphy absorbed a distinct Japanese aesthetic often symbolised by the ensō or circle of enlightenment.

Zen calligraphy is practiced by Buddhist monks and most shodō practitioners. To write Zen calligraphy with mastery, one must clear one's mind and let the letters flow out of themselves, not practice and make a tremendous effort.

This state of mind was called the mu-shin, or "no mindstate," by the Japanese philosopher Nishida Kitaro. It is based on the principles of Zen Buddhism, which stresses a connection to the spiritual rather than the physical.[9]

Before Japanese tea ceremonies (which are connected to Zen Buddhism), one is to look at a work of shodō to clear one's mind. This is considered an essential step in the preparation for a tea ceremony.[9]

See Gary Snyder’s poem "Mountains & Rivers Without  End" for a poetic rendering of "One Stroke." This small verse is how he ends his monumental long poem!

The space goes on
But the wet black brush
tip drawn to a point
lifts away 

I recently came across the following passage from the Sakyong Mipham's newest publication, The Shambhala Principle, which was sent to me by my old friend Catherine Clark. The Sakyong, as he is known, is the eldest son of Chogyam Trungpa. These are the opening words of his chapter on Culture.

The first time my father taught me the art of calligraphy I was moved by the power of simply holding a brush in my hand and dipping it into ink, creating a symbol on a white sheet of paper. As I held the brush, my father held my hand. I felt his breath on my neck. As he guided my hand down the sheet of paper, I could feel the surge of power and nervous energy. When I completed my stroke, he looked at me and said, "Good." It was a curious moment of confirmation, for he was not simply saying that what I had done was good, he was also saying that my action allowed goodness to arise.
When I asked my father why I needed to learn calligraphy, he said. "Enlightened culture." In this simple act of teaching me calligraphy, he was passing along an ancient lineage of artistic expression, initiating me into his culture of goodness. He wanted to bring sophistication to a young boy and through this artistic ritual, he was contributing to my cultural self-identity. He felt that painting, poetry, music and dance are ways we can come into contact with that goodness. Even Aristotle talks about art being the truest expression of nature. Therefore art is considered to be one of the highest hallmarks of civilized culture. It communicates basic goodness through symbol, which gives others the power to realize it instantaneously.  [from The Shambhala Principle: Discovering Humanity's Hidden Treasure by Sakyong Mipham, Harmony Books, NY, 2013, pp 149-150]

The following video shows a number of Tibetan Buddhist masters doing calligraphy including Chogyam Trungpaa, his son, the Sakyong Mipham and Tai Situ Rinpoche. I don't know if many people know this who haven't met the late Chogyam Trungpa in person but his left side was paralyzed from an early accident. This is rarely stated. But I love the graceful way he adapts his movements which says so much about his presence. If you like this video you can access the remaining four videos in this series on You Tube.

Gorgeous Tibetan Calligraphy and Sand Letters at the Trace Foundation

Check out the following samples of gorgeous Tibetan Calligraphy from the Trace Foundation in NYC.


Gorgeous Calligraphy and Sand Letters for Sale | Trace Foundation

Slide Show of Shery Jaffe's Sharing Light Show at Ursa Major Gallery

Last night Ursa Major Gallery operated by Lauri Marder hosted an opening for Khandroling Paper Cooperative's main instructor, Sheryl Jaffe's show, "Sharing Light." Lauri as usual laid a gorgeous spread for the opening which was well attended. Outside Sheryl set up a demonstration tent for passers by to make paper. For a few hours a lively group of adults and kids tried their hand at papermaking. For fibers Sheryl had earlier cooked up grass clippings, beat an old 400 count red cotton sheet in her critter, and brought some kozo to hand beat. The results were fantastic as you can see in the slide show.

If you live locally, please join us again next Saturday, for yet another outdoor papermaking demonstration at Ursa Gallery during Art Walk in Shelburne Falls. Sheryl's a great teacher and artist and fun to make paper with for the first time. Papermaking is a forgiving art and one always gets wonderful results. Stop by the Ursa Major gallery and see the show. [photos by Jacqueline Gens]

News from Khandroling Paper Cooperative for the 4th July and following week

Join us for Sheryl Jaffe's opening and papermaking session at Ursa Major Gallery in Shelburne Falls, MA located near the pot holes this Sunday, July 7, 2013  3:00-6:00 PM

As part of her show Sharing Light, Sheryl will be hosting a paper-making session outside the gallery from 3-6, dare I say "Rain or Shine"? Come see this lilting, floating installation, talk to the artist, and have some refreshments.

If you can't make it to the reception, please come by during weekends from now until August 4th, from 1-5pm.

For further information, call 413 824 0502, or 413 585 9861

The Ursa Major Gallery is located near Shelburne Falls Massachusetts' famous glacial potholes, on Deerfield Ave.

Some of us will be making paper on site for our groupd show scheduled in September at Ursa Major. Come join us if you can. 

F

I'm finally set up to make paper on my porch and garden here on Main Street in "downtown" Conway. We have some large 6 foot and 7 foot moulds ready to make scrolls or large sheets. Earlier today I "fired" the critter for the first time since February to beat some linen donated to the cooperative by Margaret. All is well as you can see. We have loads of interesting fibers to cook and beat outside (ginko, Kozo, and iris)  as well as lots of half-beaten stuff like abaca and bamboo. It's more fun to work with a variety of pulps. Contact me (jacquelinegens108@gamil.com) to let me know when you would like to come by and make paper--Beginners welcome.  Here you can see we're off to a good start as the linen pieces are circulate.

Today I beat this batch of linen for about an hour.  Already pretty fluffy. Tomorrow I'll continue to beat reserving the finest pulp for adding pigments to use for stenciling and pulp painting.

Here's a list of our sacred substances to add to some of the pulp to continue making special calligraphy papers, my area of interest. Margherita hand draws all our packaging, including this list. 

Current Products, Summer 2013

At the June retreat with Chogyal Namkhai Norbu,  Khandroling Paper Cooperative had a table where, thanks to KPC member, Margherita, we sold many of her handmade books and crystal wands packaged in handmade paper boxes.

Each handmade book is unique with a cover made from our own KPC stock. The book block itself is made from recycled paper.

These three books are a fine example and are available in either standard or landscape formats

The papers were made with Kozo (light background) which we hand beat and Iris (dark fiber) which we cooked, then beat. The Tibetan writing was made with seaweed that was liquified in the blender. The rich purple color is a hallmark of the sea weed "ink" we use for calligraphy and pulp painting. The book pictured in the middle uses horsetail found at Khandroling. 

[all photos by Kathryn O'Connor, 2013]

SHARING LIGHT by Sheryl Jaffe at the Ursa Major Gallery

SHARING LIGHT  by Sheryl Jaffe

at the Ursa Major Gallery

ursamajorgallery.com

at 1 Deerfield Avenue, Shelburne Falls, MA

from June 20-August 4, 2013

Hours:  Weekends 1-5:00

or by appointment  413-824-0502  or  413-585-9861

PAPERMAKING RECEPTION

JULY 7, 2013   3-6:00

AN EXHIBIT OF HANDMADE PAPER PRINTS AND SCULPTURE. 

FIBERS AND LIGHT THAT CONNECT US, MOVE US, REACH US.

contact:  sherylannjaffe@gmail.com

Our KPC Logo/Seal/Chop

Many Thanks to Harold Graves, secretary of Tsegyalagr East, for creating our logo for Khandroling Paper Cooperative

My First Handmade Calligraphy Paper

I used one of Sheryl Jaffe's handmade mould and deckle sets to create tradittional calligraphy paper from Kozo and Ping Tang hand beaten fibers. The mould measures 27 inches horizontally which makes it suitable for writing text or mantras.

I was very happy with the results. In the next batch I will add gold flecks and sacred substances for calligraphy paper.

I also experimented with some decorative elements by adding dark iris fibers.


Here's the final result of our five foot scroll made using the floating Nepalese mould. Many Thanks to Sheryl Jaffe for introducing this marvelous low-tech method to us. Next I will be testing the ink absorption qualities. We did not size these pieces.

Khandroling Paper Cooperative Makes Calligraphy Paper for Chögyal Namkhai Norbu

[Chögyal Namkhai Norbu at the Contemporary Museum of Calligraphy in Moscow]

In preparation for Chögyal Namkhai Norbu`s arrival at Tsegyalgar East, Khandroling Paper Cooperative, prepared its first batch of fine calligraphy papers for his use while here in June.

On Saturday, April 27, 2013, Naomi Zeitz and Jacqueline Gens headed out to Sheryl Jaffe's paper studio for a paper making date.  Sheryl is a new member of our community and the main instructor for the papermaking cooperative.

Before our arrival, Sheryl had cooked up a batch of Kozo and started up the critter to which we added some Khandroling pulp and some already cooked and beaten Ping Tang pulp from Carriage House papers, which is known for its fine ink absorption quality good for traditional calligraphy throughout Asia.

Here's Naomi holding up our hand beaten Kozo ready to add to one of our vats under Sheryl's marvelous outdoor paper making pavilion made entirely from long-lastign locust branches

We usually work with several vats of  differnet pulps combining both hand beaten fibers and pulp made in our portable  hollander beater. That day we had cooked and beaten Iris, Kozo, linen or flax beaten in our critter adding the mitzumata. We made a number of different sizes from standard to sheets a couple of feet long for Rinpoche to use.

After a few hours of turning out dozens of papers with our various moulds and deckles and different fibers,  Sheryl suggested that we make a few large sheets in her Nepalese-style mould. Here is the water bath constructed out of 2 x 4s and plastic to float the mould before adding pulp.

She then added pulp made in the critter to the mould

This method is very low tech and a variation that is used throughout Asia. Sheryl learned it attending a demo held at one of the Dard Hunter Conferences.









The next simple step is to agitate the pulp and make sure it is distributed evenly. Here she is paying special attention to the edges and corners to make sure there is enough pulp.

Once we evened out the pulp before lifting the mould, Sheryl then place some wooden dowels in the center so that the sides would remain stable instead of buckling under the weight of the heavy wet pulp.

There's no photo of the two of us lifting the heavy water logged mould from the bath but here we've balanced the mould so that it can drain

thoroughly before we dry it upright in the sun. To help facilitate the draining, she used her wet shop vac to pull the water from the screen holding the pulp in the mould. The screen is nothing fancy but curtain material tacked onto the wooden mould.

Stay tuned for the finished papers from this session. Normally we would add recycled Mirrors to our pulp as part of our mission to recycle sacred texts. In this instance, with everything in storage, we trust that Rinpoche himself will empower the paper should he use it.


For the latest info and schedule of events, visit Khandroling Paper Cooperative

To read about the amazing world of Tibetan fonts and calligraphy visit Tashi Mannox's fine website.





Coming soon our 7 foot mould donated to KPC!

Spring Hours and Programs Coming Soon

Well, here's our entire operation in storage. Many Thanks to Harold, Dave Hayes and Tom Burton for transporting everything to the storage unit

Many Thanks to the Dzogchen Community for hosting us this past winter in their basement, now being prepared for the upcoming retreats with Chogyal Namkhai Norbu.

Khandrolng Paper Cooperative will have a booth at the retreat with Chogyal Namkhai Norbu at 18 Schoolhouse Rd. in Conway from June 7-12 with lots of products to sell. Summer and fall workshops TBA

Recent News from Mark Lander via the Yahoo Papermaking Group

Here's a recent message from Mark Lander, the creator of the amazing "critter" that has so enhanced the lives of papermakers and artists all over the world. The simplicity of his 'hollander' beater design combined with it's low price has opened up the field of professional papermaking.  A lively man, we always enjoy his missives, news and interesting developments.

Here's his most recent message:

Hi everyone,
A big Hi from the South Island in New Zealand where it is Autumn, all the trees are changing color here, so so beautiful.

Finally I have my papermaking set up around the back of my new studio shed, the big pond vat is full up with 4000 litres of water, huge moulds are out in the sun drying. You know, hmmm ...what I really want is some of those big plastic pallets to lay across the ground to walk on so things don't get too muddy.

So, down I went to the local Council recycling depot where you can find that sort of thing, talking to the man, I said I wanted them for papermaking stuff, he looked at me oddly and said... 'Hey you! you're that papermaking Dude, the boss wants to see you immediately, follow me right now' OK I'm thinking what have I done, last time they accused me of sabotaging the town sewer system, that wasn't me, honest.

Turns out they have an idea, Yes turning toxic waste into beautiful bunches of handmade paper flower arrangements... they have people and funding but have not a clue as to how to go about it, they need expertise, and have been ringing my old 'cut off' phone number for weeks, and here I turn up, in their town, wandering across the their own back yard!
So So, out with the trusty rag cutter, (the one everyone said was a danger to the human race), the Critter Hollanders are churning away, a cotton and flax mix will be just right, hundreds of moulds (that I can't tell you about because i had to... 'sigh' ...sign a confidentiality agreement) the dye vats, the georgeous colors, the upside down volley ball nets to hang stuff up to dry, the creative brain steaming away, my studio looks like the eighth botanical wonder of the world, The results are more beautiful than anyone ever imagined, see see I keep telling you... Papermaking is Awesome!

Good News I have the Critter Project up and running well again , things got interesting with one that got stuck in Russian customs and has been around the world twice (which is an interesting story with a happy ending ... apart from selling my old truck for food!) so I am having a Northern Hemisphere 'Get set up for Spring' promotion. I have a 2lb capacity machine ready to go this coming week with no ones name on it yet, almost at the grinding in stage..Yay! More to come.

Interesting Critter Facts: ...I am up to machine #358, end to end they now stack higher than the Empire State building.
... The Price of a Critter is still the same in NZ$ dollars as they were 11 years ago... I have just got more efficiant in making them!

Thanks everyone, Best Wishes from Mark.

Yahoo has two main Hand Papermaking groups to join including the Hollander Beater papermaking group if you are interested or own a critter. Both have extensive resources online!

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PaperMaking/
http://groups.yaahoo.com/group/Hollander_Beater/

Last Call for this Season

Khandroling Paper Cooperative will be packing up for the next three months while Jacqueline Gens is on semi-retreat at Tara Mandala in Pagosa Springs, CO volunteering in their "Living Dharma" program. Many Thanks to Tsultrim Allione for making this possible. I look forward to seeing old friends during the next few months.

The paper cooperative will resurface sometime in June at Tsegyalgar East in Conway, MA to coincide with Chögyal Namkhai Norbu's June retreats June 7-12, 2013 followed by his Santi Maha Sangha training.

Last weekend--an undergraduate student in education at Fitchberg State contacted us to make paper for a school project. Sonia and her friend Eric made different colored papers representing the five elements which will go towards making paper lungta that Sonia will later hand stencil for her presentation. Hope we see some images of the final outcome. Since they had no background in papermaking, they were introduced to the process via the famous Arnold Grummer Blender/Pour mould method--fail proof and wonderfully fun. After a couple of hours they graduated to a western- style mould and deckle making paper with ease from newly beaten linen pulp in our Critter earlier that morning.  [See below].

Harold Graves, the Tsegyalgar East secretary also stopped by to make paper from newly beaten linen and mitsumata fiber. [See below].

Thank you everyone for your support. Visit our blog again for updates on new products and activities over the next few months.

Jacqueline Gens
February 18, 2013

Conway, MA

Losar Greetings Year of the Water Snake

So this is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius
That long awaited communitas, with its panacea of universal love
Destined to unlock hard hearts.

Let the water snakes torpedo with their periscopic heads
As they propel us into sights beyond the norm to shed
Fixations, mental concepts and mean thoughts, our usual
Stale fare.

Let’s take our daily frights into the realm of self-manifest
Iridescence
Shed a skin; trade our complacency for wisdom mind
Wake to never ending freshness
And the minds true liberation

May all beings unearth the bounty of their innate treasure
And share in the grace of harmony
Released at last when love will steer the stars. 


Jacqueline Gens
Dawn
Tsegyalgar East
February 11, 2013 

Recent Pulp Painting Works

If you would like to see some of the work Naomi and I made during our recent workshop at Dieu Donne, visit this link on our Tsegyalgar East Community Blog.

Slide Show of our January Workshop

As psrt of our ongoing educational programs in papermaking, our January workshop with Sheryl Jaffe focused on Inclusions. We used a variety of pulps to make gorgeous translucent papers to which we added many different kinds of inclusions for laminating. embossing and collaging. We also began to conceptualize our Spring installation and show. Stay tuned for updates on February and March programming.

Our Visit to Dieu Donne

On Tuesday evening, Naomi and I attended a great workshop on pulp painting at Dieu Donne Paper mill in NYC where we finally got an in depth intro to mixing pigments with pulp. Our work from the workshop is still there drying but we can upload the results when we receive the paper we made back.. We hed traveled via megabus just for the three hour advanced workshop!

Well, guess we'll be beating more linen for ten hours to have some colored pulps on hand for our January workshop.

Next Workshop January 26 & 27 with Brenda Lilly & Sheryl Jaffe

LOCATION:
18 Schoolhouse Road
Conway, MA
413-522-1125 for further information or to register

Please join us for our January Workshop (Jan 26 & 27) which continues the exploration of the creative process of papermaking including the many uses of hand made paper by our master teachers,  Brenda Lilly and Sheryl Jaffe.

By arrangement with the instructors, this workshop has a special  donations payment plan according to each person's financial situation. The purpose is to continue to instruct interested individuals in the paper making process so they feel comfortable to work in the studio on their own.  People coming from out of town can request from the geko if they can stay in the Tsegyalgar East dorm for a fee. Write David Hayes at geko@tsegyalgar.org. 

If you want to learn how to make paper, here's an opportunity

SCHEDULE

Saturday, January26
Drop-in Origami Class with Brenda Lilly
9:00 A-Noon Come by and learn how to make a Lotus Flower Box, Traditional Crane, Brochure Box, or a variety of bird folds. She will have paper and directions for these projects and more. Come by and expand your imagination and go home with beautiful objects made from paper! CHILDREN WELCOME

 Saturday, January 26, 2013

1:00 PM-4:00 PM (and morning session beginning at 10:00 AM)
Inclusions Papermaking with Sheryl Jaffee
Participants can choose to learn about making pulp or attend Brenda's session on origami in an open studio environment where she will guide each person in a project of their choice.

INCLUSIONS with Sheryl Jaffe

Bring threads, old linens, prayer flags or ??  We can make kozo and cotton with inclusions and seaweed calligraphy.  We can talk about how paper is about communication and community.  Maybe any interested folks could stop in at any time. 10-4 Sat & 10-3 Sunday.

Sunday, January 27, 2013

INCLUSIONS continued

10:00 AM-3:00 PM with Sheryl Jaffee
optional studio time after 3:00 PM

Lunch breaks usually are pot-luck

Space is limited so please register early by contacting Jacqueline Gens at jaqueline.gens@gmail.com

The 2012 Swatch Swap Book is Here

Khandroling Paper Cooperative is part of an international papermakers Swatch  Swap  book with samples of paper accompanied with their descriptions. Both Sheryl Jaffee and Jacqueline Gens submitted 70 samples of their paper to include in the handmade books sponsored this year by the Canadian Paperdreamers of Quebec.  Each book was handmade and handsewn with all the paper samples. These Swatch Swaps grew out of a very active Yahoo papermaking discussion group that is the go to  place for information about handmade paper.

Here are samples of Sheryl's two submissions:

Horsetail

Sheryl also experimented with using old prayer flags as part of our ethos of recycling sacred text. Sheryl has participated in these swaps for years. These books are a great resource which we studied from Sheryl's library of past Swatch books for inspiration and ideas.

Finally, here is my humble submission under Khandroling Paper Cooperative -- a real plain Jane, as they say,  made with hand-beaten Kozo and recycled Mirrors while on retreat at Khandroling this past August. One day I cooked the fibers, then rinsed with pond water and finally hand beat. I liked air drying the paper which I later pressed in an antique book press. We had not received our Mark Lander hollander beater yet and I did not have access to a blender. However, Kozo proved a marvelous fiber to work with.

Dakini Script

I've heard of this kind of script used to communicate  special "Terma" (Treasures) to Tertons (Treasure Holders). I found this sample on Facebook: 

Terma revelation by Terton Migyur Dorje, written in dakini script (yellow letters outlined in orange on blue background). "Those who see this script will not experience the three lower realms and will be liberated from the fear of falling into the lower realms; will be purified of the five poisons and freed from the results of one's karma; will be freed from the fear of remaining in samsara."--terma revelation of Terton Migyur Dorje. --from the following online source

 I was intrigued by the way the letters are interconnected and appear to dance across the page. I  once met a woman who had a connection with the late Dudjom Rinpoche (1904-1987). One day he showed her many small pieces of thin yellow paper with "Dakini Script" which appeared as incomprehensible scribbles. The Terton is able to decipher this writing and unfold whole Teachings that were embedded from an earlier era or from another realm.

Chögyal Namkhai Norbu founder of the International Dzogchen Community is a Terton and our retreat land, Khandroling, the location of many of his Terma related to the Vajra Dance.

Here's an interesting article about another teacher of mine, Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche's early terma which describes the yellow scrolls recovered by CTR.

As this particular page is the most frequented page on this blog, I enclose a link to the very interesting site http://www.dakiniscripts.at/dedicated to Dakini Scripts,

Trace Foundation on Tibetan Calligraphy

In September 2012 The Trace Foundation featured a Tibetan Calligraphy event in NYC to a full house.

For fifteen hundred years the Tibetan plateau has been home to a unique calligraphic culture, due both to a large population of monks who were expected to copy sacred texts and to technological development slowed by decades of geographic and political isolation. That’s why, as we become a part of a networked, plugged-in world—and as we spend more and more hours in front of computer screens—Trace Foundation was so excited to see a full and lively house for an event we held celebrating the heritage and techniques of this unique traditional art. We were particularly pleased to see so many parents bring their children to deepen understanding of their heritage.

On Saturday, September 29, 2012, Mipham Namgyal Rinpoche, a highly regarded artist, designer, calligrapher, and tulku (a reincarnated Tibetan lama) traveled to us from the Wamlung Dongak Chökorling Monastery in Kyegudo, Qinghai, to give a lecture and demonstration on his art form. Even before guests arrived, the Library came to life as he unrolled his work and as we hung up the work of special guests calligrapher Phuntsok Dhumkhang and library director Pema Bhum.

 To read more, visit:
http://www.trace.org/news/full-house-calligraphy-event#.UNQkK4VnOqQ

Please check back for the dates of our ongoing Tibetan calligraphy class in Conway< MA at the yellow schoolhouse. 

What's New at Khandroling Paper Cooperative: Open Studios of Late

Lately, our open studios have been graced by many visitors and enthusiastic artists stopping by to make art and learn more about the handmade paper process. Kathy O'Connor (photo background) from New York City saw our pile of scraps destined for the Critter and suggested  we reserve these lovely and luminesent paper scraps for making collages. She used a wooden  picture frame ($1.00 from Michael's) which she collaged and finished with a picture of Mandarava or Goma Devi.

Kathy also helped us finish one of our orders for Japanese style  wallets which we learned to make from Sheryl in our last workshop. These are extremely labor intensive with many steps such as making the paper from start to finish, dying pigments for pulp painting or stenciling,  cutting the wallet out from our paper using a template,  gluing, pressing, drying, scoring the final folds, and coatin with methyl cellulose.  We listened over and over on her Mac Book Pro to  Gurbani Kirtan singer,  Hari Bhajan Kaur.

Margarita  (photo foreground) from Ontario, at Tsegyalgar East for a retreat with her friend Yulia also from Ontario,  revealed her extraordinary talent for precision in making us a variety of book and folder templates. She also had numerous ideas for product development.

Here she is measuring out a template for a folder to hold practice texts--something we all coveted when finished.  We look forward to working with Margarita on developing some excellent products
to go into our Etsy store we are working on.

It's so great to work together with so many different people who bring their unique skills to the studio. Making art is fun but making together is even more fun especially in the context of our community.

On a volunteer note:

*Thank you Harold for your donation of overhead lighting and installing them. It's made a huge difference.

*Thanks Nary for routing our dehumidifier hose into a nearby drain pipe so we don't have to empty the five gallon bucket every other day.

*Thanks again to Nary  for fixing the heating blower in our studio.

WISH LIST
** A used refridgerator with freezer
**Fantasy wish list:  An etching or letter press for embossing papers
**Apple product boxes
**sacred substances (contact us what this means)

Stay tuned for our upcoming winter and spring workshop schedules that we are working on now. In the works-- a Beginning Tibetan Calligraphy class and more to come.....

In January Naomi and I will be taking a course at Dieu Donne Papermill in NYC to increase our knowledge of watermarks, pigment preparation and pulp painting.

And yes--one more thing --- the 2012 swatch book is completed. Khandroling Paper Coopertive will be one of 70 international papermakers presented in the hand-made book, a tradition that allows papermakers to share their work annually and, better yet, their recipes which is very educational. Our entry called "Plein Aire" is a hand beaten kozo paper made while on retreat at Khandroling.

Everyone have a great holiday!

Papermaking in Tibet

A SHORT FILM ON TIBETAN PAPERMAKING from Chinese TV in English.

Slide Show from our November 18 Origami and Simple Gifts Workshop

Tuesday Open Studio November 13

Greetings Everyone

This morning I opened our Carriage House order with lots of fibers, color additives and 2 new moulds and deckles to add to our collection. Some of our booty above. Tomorrow, I'll be in the paper studio 1:00 PM-5:00 PM after spending the morning on Khandroling photographing the new road and the space around the vajra hall

Not sure what I will do tomorrow afternoon in the studio but join me if you have some free time.
I was thinking of a long beating time for Abaca to experiment with some colors for pulp painting and making some stencils for watermarking. There's lots of linen to cut up for the critter and some Kozo that needs hand beating.

Sheryl Jaffe's work will be in the Zea Mays Print Fair North Show

Sheryl Jaffe's work will be shown at the Zea Mays Printmaking Cooperative show Print Fair North in Florence, MA the weekend of November 10-11.


Print Fair North @ zea mays printmaking

New Location: 320 Riverside Drive, Florence, MA 01062

November 10–11, 2012

10am–5pm @ Zea Mays Printmaking


Hundreds of original fine art prints by studio artists for sale at studio (not gallery) prices. Printmaking demonstrations throughout the day. Raffle for prints and workshops.

Sheryl is one of our main advisors and instructors at the Khandroling Paper Cooperative. During our October Harvest workshop Sheryl showed us examples of prints she made at the Zea Mays studio using her handmade paper. We look forward to experiment with  printmaking using our own papers.