Kamiko: Five Paper Coats

The forms of paper that surround us — smooth, white, easily torn and weak to water — are typically made from the flattened, bleached fibers of wood pulp. Kamiko: Five Paper Coats is a sequence of five jackets assembled from sheets of wrinkled handmade Japanese washi paper sourced from workshops in Kurotani, Mino and the Noto peninsula that show very different material possibilities of paper. These five garments, designed and created by DNJ Paper in Melbourne, are made of five unique papers; a paper that includes clay and diatomaceous earth, cedar bark paper, eucalyptus-dyed paper, traditional paper cloth treated with konnyaku jelly, and lace paper. These garments express the potential of paper when used as an alternative to conventional cloth.

Drawing on an endangered historical practice, these garments express the potential of paper, and act as a proposition for new relationships with materials and clothing.

DNJ Paper are the selected designers for the MPavilion 10 Uniform Commission.

Kamiko: Five Paper Coats is presented as part of Craft Contemporary 2023 – our annual festival celebrating craft practice today.

Image: Henry Trumble