Lisa Miles
El Valle de los Brujos 

Media: hand-beaten kozo bark paper, natural dyes, rice paste

Artist Statement:
Through meditative manipulation of plants, a reflection of nature is created. Beaten by hand with a volcanic stone on a wood board, this bark paper book attempts to conjure the enchanted, high desert. Subtle pop-up yucca plants invite the viewer to enter the harsh, but vibrant landscape.

one-of-a-kind • 4” x 8” (closed) / 16” x” 8” (flat) / approx. 12” x 8” (on display)
•••
On Process
A pulp painting creates images with pigmented pulp; in this process, I meditatively “draw” with plant-dyed kozo fiber. Inspired by ancient Aztec and Maya papermaking traditions, I have innovated the technique to produce imagery that is composed face-down during the wet stages of the formation process. The fiber is then hand-beaten with a stone and air-dried. The slightly-abstracted composition is revealed when the dried sheet is released from the board. The process is plant-based and has low environmental impact.

.

Biography

Lisa Miles is a papermaker and book artist who focuses on hand-beaten bark papers. She creates limited edition artist books under the imprint Dutchess Press. Originally from New England, Miles lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico. She holds an MFA in Book Arts from the University of Iowa Center for the Book. In 2017–2018, she represented the United States as a Fulbright Arts Researcher for her project “Bark Paper, Plant Dyes, and the Book Arts in Indonesia.”