Handmade Paper Art - June Corstorphine

Recently June Corstorphine of Threshold Handmade Paper Art in North Vancouver, Canada wrote to introduce her unique handmade paper wall art. Long interested in interior design, she first experimented with batik, decoupage, faux painting, and mosaics. When her daughter began bringing home colorful notices from school, June would recycle them into homemade paper to use for card making. 

 

After several years she began paper making in earnest, and now creates original home decor pieces from cast paper. Hand-spun art fibers, feathers, metallic thread, text, mica, and found objects are often incorporated into her work.

Many of June's highly textured collages express themes of faith, transformation, and antiquity.

Smooth Stones - 44 x 14 inches; handmade paper, paint, glue, acrylic polymer emulsion, conservation varnish, and Styrofoam armature

Smooth Stones captured my attention immediately, not only due to its large size (the above photo doesn't begin to do justice!), but also because of its realistic beauty. June said she was inspired by nature to create water and pebbles, and hopes it will convey the peace and tranquility of a river bed. "As I carved each stone I am reminded of how unique each one of us is and that over time the water smooths out our rough edges."

"The stones are carved from Styrofoam, then pulp is added and when the pulp dries, they are painted. People always tell me they think they are real stones. Flecks of mica flicker and reflect light on the water."

Inward Journey (17 x 18 inches) is another highly dimensional piece that caught my eye. It was created from handmade paper, simulated pearls, paint, glue, acrylic polymer emulsion, and conservation varnish.

See more of June's work at Threshold Handmade Paper Art and find her on Facebook.