We are so excited about helping to promote the Paper Convention Collective, an exciting new project started by Lisa from Lox + Savvy in conjuction with paper artists, creators and lovers. You will be able to learn more and experience the exciting new initiative at the upcoming Sydney Finders Keepers! We chat to Lisa about the Collective.

Tell us about the upcoming Paper Convention Collective?
The Paper Convention is a collective dedicated to the documentation of Paper Expressionism through paper-installations, exhibitions and paper-art, zine-making, paper-crafting, workshops and lectures. It is a simple, powerful statement that aims to encourage and harness emerging paper artists and makers. It is a message that insists on the notion of community and utilises art as a catalyst for documenting and bringing communities together.

What was the motivation behind starting it?
Paper has been overlooked in recent years. But in what can be seen as a backlash to the mass-market digital design style, paper has slowly climbed the cool ladder, reminding us that all you really need is a simple piece of paper and a little creativity. People are rediscovering the joys of paper in a form like never seen before. It is not a step backward. This humble medium has developed into a powerful tool of stylish-expression & functionality around the world.

What is your background and what lead you to wanting to be involved in paper art & installations?
With a love of all things paper, our collective which is ever-growing and expanding involves the support of many individuals including the founder of the Paper Convention Collective myself Lisa Loxley of Lox+Savvy,  paper strategist Garry Maidment, Australian paper-artist & Zine maker living in Japan Hello Sandwich, unique online paper-store Upon a fold, Visual Communicators Trial & Error, Specialty paper merchants K.W.Doggett Fine Paper known as ‘The Paper People’, of course kindred support from you guys The Finders Keepers and many other paper-artists and makers.
My own personal passion for paper and wanting to change the perception of paper and its role within environment as we see it today and a pure love of how creative and diverse paper-installations can become, has led me to create and develop this collective, in order to harness paper in every way and our every day life.

Where has your work in progress being taking you and what are your current challenges?
Establishing the paper collective has been a great way to interact with like-minded individuals, which is exciting and a ‘work in progress’ as we speak. With launching the first ever paper event in 2011 which will bring the attention to paper, which is on the cusp of new possibilities is a huge challenge in itself!

What are your plans for the upcoming Finders Keepers in Sydney and what can visitors expect to see and experience?
We will be launching our very first paper-event at The Finders Keepers by way of a large-scale paper installation in December. We want to entice, shock and interact people with paper.
People will be able to experience the joys of re-discovering and exploring paper through an atmosphere which encourages collaboration and the sharing of ideas and the community spirit. It will offer endless possibilities limited only by the imagination of the participants.

In conjunction, we have created a fun paper-based workshop featuring artist Hello Sandwich [all the way from Japan] who will show you how to make zines and other paper-based products! All you need is to bring along your own scissors!

What is your main goal with the development of the Paper Convention Collective and how can people get involved?
Our main goal is to harness paper artists and makers who don’t necessarily have to be professionally-inclined, they could be the person at home making their own hand-made cards to the graphic designer developing and hand-crafting a large-scale paper installation for exhibiting, it’s about anyone who is passionate about paper!

People can get involved by way of signing up to our mailing list at this stage via www.paperconvention.com which is soon to launch an online forum on all things paper.

With our key paper event launching in 2011, we are keen to seek the interest from people wanting to come on board as a sponsor/supporter/partner.

CALL OUT TO ARTISTS
We are also calling-out to Australian-based paper artists [whether your emerging or established] who can display unusual techniques, curious paper materials and clever concepts, work selected will belong in a league of their own, inspiring the community in the paper arts and thrilling paper lovers of the ingenious and the imaginative to be part of our key event next year!

We look forward to seeing your projects!
Contact us at hello@paperconvention.com

Paper-installation photography credits include:- Trial & Error (trialanderror.com.au), Jesse Brown (papervspencil.com), Hattie Newman (hattienewman.co.uk) & Chloe Fleury (chloefleury.com).