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Hello everyone!
I'm a 23yo girl from France. I'm new to paper mache - haven't done it since I was 4ish... I'm a professional artist but so far I've only been working in 2D.
My style is quite figurative and I would like to use props in my paintings to create strange or dreamlike atmospheres. I've been looking for props on ebay and flea markets but my taste goes to victorian or rococco stuff, veeeery expensive.
And so I thought of paper mache. After all it would be even better to be able to create props myself!! I love the vintage look of paper mache, and browsing the web I see really stunning stuff. I'm really eager to get started.
Obviously I would start with easier things, and I've found recipes and all but I would like to have a real book and not only internet stuff. So I thought I would ask around here : what do you think a good book for beginners is? I don't think I need so much help on the decorative side, I have good knowledge of anatomy and painting for example, but I would like a book that would give me a solid technical ground on paper mache itself (different recipes or techniques, masks, wire stuff... I don't really know 
). There are many books on amazon and I really don't know which one to pick!
I hope to spend more time on this forum in the future, this is a great website 
if you want to see my work it's on my website http://www.helenedelmaire.com (but yeah, only 2D stuff, maybe not so interesting here )
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What lovely 2D work. And surely you must be English, or bilingual?
It would be difficult to suggest a book that covers all you want. I guess your needs go much further than many books would provide for. Jackie, the owner of this site has an e book (now available in print and advertised on this page) that covers a wide range of material but might not be sufficiently advanced for you. Looking through all the topics in the Forum on this site will give a huge amount of information and you can always post questions, that are likely to receive good and detailed answers.
DavidO
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Papier Mache Art & Design by Jackie Hall is a good place to start. You can buy it in the bound paper version, or online. She starts out with the basics: homemade pulp and laminated strips applied to temporary shaped forms (molds), and building up on cardboard forms. Then she goes on to 3D forms using armatures of wire mesh, spool wire and things like foam pipe insulation. Her basic tutorials will show you what you can do with papier mache, opening the door to where you can go with it (practically anywhere!).
The Art & Craft of Papier Mache by Juliet Bawden (1995) is an older book, often available used, info and methods are still up-to-date. The author is not a papier mache artist, but she has written an informative book with excellent work from many PM artists and very good photos. While she does go over the basic formation methods, she goes into surface finishes more extensively.
The Contemporary Craft of Papier Mache by Helga Muller and Helga Meyer is another older (1996) book that hasn't aged at all.
Sue
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Hi Helene, I'm looking forward to see how you proceed with this, as it seems a very interesting idea. My figures are somewhat realistic, and I am entirely self taught when it comes to paper mache. I discovered this site years after I had started. If I can be of any assistance, let me know and I'd be happy to help if I can. You can contact me at erika@erikatakacs.com
Good luck!
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Thank you erikatakacs! For now I'm preparing myself and sorting out what I need, etc. I'm sure when I start I will have some problems... I'll let you know! You have some very nice work on your website, do you just paint them with acrylics?
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Hi Helene,
Your artwork is lovely........I can well understand you wanting to branch out into 3D and papier mache is *the* medium of course (though I know I'm biased!)
Regarding my ebook "Papier Mache Art & Design", we put the ebook into print as some people prefer to have a copy they can actually hold and don't have sophisticated enough printers to handle it. As we don't have a large publishing company behind us, the printing costs are high, hence the price of the book bought in print form.
However, a lot of people have told me how pleased they have been with the printing out of it on their own computers. We designed the pages specifically so that they would fit perfectly A5 pages/two pages can be printed on one A4 sheet and it is a lot cheaper than buying the printed copy.
Looking forward to seeing your first papier mache creations. Let us know when you are ready for a gallery on this site.
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HeleneD wrote:
do you just paint them with acrylics?
Yes, quite a few lately. And sometimes I use a sealer on top. I have a few that don't have any finish on top, because that's how they look the best to me. I love the beautiful textures and discoloration of unfinished papier mache. Especially the brand called Celluclay.
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