Flottage and all that Jazz.

My biblionautic chums and friends. I hope we are all well.

Yesterday, a glorious day of Flottage. Though I teach Flottage it is a very rare chance that I have time and the space to work on papers for myself. I produced, much to my amazement, 49 sheets of decorated paper. Many double and triple dipped, colour fields,swirls and blotches, enough for a year.
I really enjoy Flottage, perhaps a more modern, spontaneous, free form and full of action way of creating interesting contemporary, decorative papers.

Thankfully they are not everyone's taste ( I prefer to be an individual, making individual work for individual people) and unlike other, shall we say traditional ways of decorating paper, there are rarely, if ever, 'bad' papers. Each paper is unique, even if I wanted to reproduce or get near to a previous pattern it would be impossible. To be honest I would not want to reproduce...

I work with A1 paper, the size allows me not to just look at the paper but see the paper and the design, either as a whole or more specific areas that work on the book or box. Thus ensuring that there is always some parts (even on the not so hot papers) that is of use and attractive.

So, is marbling the same as Flottage?. 

I suppose it is down to interpretation. I would sort of consider traditional marbling, with all the moss, water temp etc Flottage and of course Flottage to be a form of marbling. However, having had some very one sided (Closed) ummm conversations...with more traditionally minded marblers that believe the work I do is the spit of satan and is therefor not marbling. I try to have an open mind about things. 
They mention the skill required to reproduce, the exactitude of the placing of the colours etc. I suppose it is like comparing Pollock (Not that I compare my work with Pollock) with a replica or copyist artist re-creating what is before. Yes, there is skill but it is a different set of skills or approach to the subject... different techniques of application and manipulation. 
There is so much snobbish-ness about it. I know there are marblers working with traditional methods and materials that do produce new work but in the main... rows and rows of of Dutch Spot or what ever does not light my candle. I suppose if one is doing historical binding then it is, of course applicable.. but for modern work, my work.. it just not right. There are many variations, Suminagashi a method of marbling in Japan (though I think the Chinese got there first) and, of course Ebru from Turkey. Each to their own. In short I produce the papers I want.. for my work. In a perverse way I am happy that there are reams of traditional marbled papers, they provide a balance or counter to what I do.... 

A selection now follows....

 Stay Safe Chums.