Laura Dahl didn’t know a lot about the art of paper making.
But when her professor, Scott Murphy, talked to her about spending this summer creating a signature College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University handmade paper using natural materials found on the two campuses, the CSB junior-to-be was intrigued.
“To be frank, I wasn’t sure why he approached me at first,” said Dahl, a psychology major and book art minor who had taken Murphy’s 2D/4D design course. “But I researched it and sort of went down the rabbit hole looking at all the different things that go into paper making as an art form.
“I found myself drawn to it. So it was more like ‘Let’s give this a try and see where it goes.’ It was definitely different than anything I’ve ever done before.”
The project is one of 13 being sponsored by the Office of Undergraduate Research and Scholars at CSB and SJU. Each summer, the office provides summer collaborative grants to 13 student-faculty teams, helping them to complete a 10-week summer research project.
Dahl is one of over 60 students working on such projects on campus this summer.
Karyl Daughters, the Dean of Curriculum and Assessment at CSB and SJU, said that helps provide students valuable tools for future professional success.
“We know from research that engaged students have better, more satisfying undergraduate experiences,” Daughters said. “Summer undergraduate research is a high-impact form of engagement.
“Summer undergraduate research is a cornerstone opportunity for our students,” she continued. “It is a transformative experience during which students forge mentoring relationships with faculty on meaningful projects that help them develop problem solving skills, technical proficiency and intellectual curiosity.
“Summer undergraduate research transforms students from learners into creators, contributing to insights and knowledge about the world.”
Murphy approached Dahl about the paper making project because he was impressed by the strength of her work in class, as well as the motivation with which she approached her tasks.
“She was creating really strong artwork and she had a great work ethic,” he said. “We try to encourage students in the book arts minor to get involved in book arts projects and I felt like she’d be a good fit for this.
“She’s picked things up really fast.”
Indeed, Dahl – who started her project on June 2 – has already been out in the Saint John’s Abbey Arboretum gathering big blue stem, a tall grass that is native to the prairie. She’s then been combining it with flax previously grown at CSB, as well as old cotton clothing donated by the CSB and SJU community.
Working in the Welle Book Arts Studio in the basement of the Benedicta Arts Center at CSB, she is mixing the pulp with water, then forming it into a mould and deckle before eventually running it through a hydraulic press.
Afterward, each individual sheet it is left to dry for 24 to 72 hours, creating part of a batch of papers that will be used for a variety of official purposes at CSB and SJU.
“It’s definitely a way to make use of the resources we have around us here and I think that’s a great thing,” Dahl said.
“In a time where everything has to move so fast, you can forget to stop and appreciate what really goes into making handcrafted pieces like this. It’s not just paper we’re creating. It’s paper with a backstory unique to CSB and SJU.”
This summer marks the second time this project has been undertaken. The first came nearly 15 years ago and resulted in a batch of paper that has since been used for a number of things, including for prints celebrating the completion of the St. John’s Bible and Literary Arts Institute authors-in-residence.
“As an art department, we’re very focused on getting students to do things with their hands, and this is a way to create something literally from materials we have right here on campus,” Murphy said. “It’s a wonderful symbol for these schools – a combination of dedicated craftwork, big picture ideas and a community of people helping make it happen.”
Murphy and Dahl are also looking to connect with local artists and others interested in using the paper.
“We’re still playing around with recipes, but our goal is to create a paper that can be printed on,” Dahl said. “Whether that means running it through a printer, or through letterpress printing. We’re looking to find people who might want to use it for things like drawings and paintings.”
In the process, Dahl is learning a unique set of skills.
“I just love the look and feel of it,” Dahl said. “This is really valuable experience. Maybe not in terms of my eventual career, but as something I can draw on and pass along to others.”
