Botanical Alchemy: The Art of Turning Everyday Plants into Paper

A course designed and taught by Melissa H Potter at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts. Students transformed responsibly foraged materials into paper, books, and sculpture, using interdisciplinary research methods to create a narrative, woven from shared plant expertise, local histories, and traditional practices with the plants of the Haystack biome. Students explored a variety of fibers, from seaweeds to lichens and grasses, transforming these plants into artworks exploring the natural environment.

Making seaweed paper at night, Haystack's papermaking studio

Handmade books and paper by Melissa Aranzamendez

Soe Yu Nwe with her works in the paper studio

Invasive species plant, Lupein made into a wearable by Josue Romero

Using the Haystack studio windows to dry paper

Foraging for materials in the Haystack landscape