Branching Out
The exhibition poster for Branching Out (above) and exhibition images (below)
Branching Out is a series of works made at the Kijimadaira Artist in Residence program in June and July 2025. The works of Kristen Tordella-Williams and Manami Ishimura explore the forest as a central theme and visualizing Kijimadaira’s landscape, culture, and community combined with handmade paper techniques. The various works included celebrate and memorialize Kijimadaira’s community and its interrelationship with the surrounding environment. The artists benefited greatly from Satoko Ueno’s generosity in sharing her fantastic papermaking studio. Tordella-Williams learned how to produce Uchiyama washi using the traditional nagashi-suki method during the residency. The resulting works show the various creative possibilities of washi and handmade paper as well as reflecting Kijimadaira’s environment and community as experienced by our group before and during the residency period.
Forest for the trees
Vacuum formed trees made with washi and iron coated strings made with Kijimadaira junior high students and community members from Kijimadaira and Yamanouch, dimensions variable, each tree is ~18”x24”, 2025
Forest for the trees is a community-engaged work made of vacuum-formed trees using kozo and iron-coated strings, created in workshops with junior high school students and residents of Kijimadaira and Yamanouchi. Each tree was made by a different participant, coming together to form a collective forest representing the spirit of the community. The title, drawn from a common English phrase, suggests seeing the bigger picture through individual contributions.
Textures
Edition of 7 artist books, each book is 25 cm x 64 cm, 2025
Textures is an edition of seven books made from crayon rubbings on washi placed over surfaces in Kijimadaira. The paper, sun-bleached Uchiyama washi made using the nagashi-suki method, was produced by the artist at Kamisukiya with guidance from Satoko Ueno. Bound with Japanese stab binding onto locally milled wood from Mizuho Mokuzai, the books capture the textures and impressions of Kijimadaira’s landscape and architecture.If a tree falls
If a tree falls features words evoking the sounds and actions of felled trees, watermarked into washi using a technique developed in 13th-century Italy. Displayed as fraying cylinders resembling stumps, the papers silently witness their own end. Referencing the philosophical question, “If a tree falls…,” the work invites viewers to imagine the sound, ensuring it is heard even in silence.
Underneath the power lines
Rusted iron painted onto handmade recycled denim jean paper, 8 ft x 4 ft, 2025
As above, so below
Rusted iron painted onto handmade recycled denim jean paper, 12 ft x 8 ft, 2025
Underneath the power lines and As above, so below were created in the artist’s U.S. studio with the help of students and friends in anticipation of the residency. Made from twelve pairs of jeans turned into paper pulp, the works feature mirrored, iron-painted trees split by electrical power lines. Referencing mountainous landscapes and Rorschach tests, the imagery reflects human impact on the natural world.
A single act of breathing
Wire, kozo, iron, ~7ft x 8ft x 2 ft, 2025
A single act of breathing appears like tree roots and lungs, the tips of its arteries corroded and rusting. We share the same environment as the forest and rely on trees to create breathable air. It acts as a complement to Underneath the power lines and As above, so below in its references to the interconnection of humans and nature.
Planting Season
Uchiyama washi, string, ~6 ft x 7 ft x 2 ft, 2025
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
Sprout Mirror
Uchiyama washi produced with nagashi-suki method, string, ~52 in x 80 in, 2025
Planting Season and Sprout Mirror are inspired by the Uchiyama papermaking process and the agricultural landscape of Kijimadaira. The strings appear like plant shoots, emerging from the washi. As we arrived at the start of rice planting season, the rice paddies across the hills sprung alive with plants. The two works explore the shapes and imagery of the landscape using washi as a primary material.
Thanks
I would like to thank all of the community members who contributed their time and energy to hosting our group as well as the two student assistants who helped produce the exhibition, Sidney Plummer and Mia Williams. I am also grateful for Satoko Ueno’s generosity in opening her studio doors to the extensive paper production required for the exhibition. Her dedication to Uchiyama washi is inspiring and I appreciate the time and energy she spent instructing me and my students. Thank you to Chihero Seki for welcoming us with open arms to the Shiga-Kogen Museum and for the opportunity to share our work. I am also grateful for my colleague, Manami Ishamura, without her tireless work, communication, and planning none of this would have happened. I appreciate the support of the Shinshu Arts Council and the Auburn University Department of Art and Art History for making this exhibition possible. I am deeply grateful for these efforts and greatly enjoyed my time in Nagano. Arigato gozaimasu!
Press
