About Paper Marbling

What is Paper Marbling?

In essence, marbling is the process of floating paint on a thickened water medium. It is then manipulated using hand made tools to create various patterns. Once ready the design can be transferred onto materials such as paper, fabric, leather, wood and ceramics.

While it sounds simple, the cliche of "easy to learn, hard to master" certainly applies to this art form. Everything from water, paints, mordant, temperature, humidity, wind, dust and a myriad of other variables can create imperfections in the work.

 

A Brief History of Paper Marbling

Marbling is believed to have originated in Japan around the 12th Century. Known as Suminagashi, it involves floating special inks on water, creating naturally swirling patterns.

Records indicate marbling knowledge reaching Turkey, possibly via the Silk Road traders. Here the technique evolved and by the 14th century with thickened water was being used. This adaption allowed for heavier paint to replace inks. The more stable medium provided greater control to make more detailed images using a stylus and stenciling. In modern Turkish, this method is known as Ebru.

As marbling spread west into Europe, Italian, French, German and English artisans refined the process, using hand tools to create the intricate combed patterns we typically associate with marbling today.

Through the Victorian Era, marbling in the western world was predominantly used in the book binding industry. Many antique books contain beautiful and original end papers within their covers. Lesser known are the old company ledgers which had the outside edges of the page marbled to alert accountants to missing pages. It is these books that inspired my passion for marbling.

Unfortunately, as competition in publishing and mechanization drove cost reduction, the use of expensive original marbled end papers declined. By the start of the 20th Century marbling was becoming uncommon and continued to diminish through to the advent of computers. Digital imagery rendered marbling obsolete from a commercial perspective.

Today, there are only a few professional marblers scattered around the world, but thankfully they are keeping this beautiful art form alive. Hand crafted marbled papers can add that special touch to any commissioned book, cloth, ceramic, figurine, the list goes on. It adds a truly unique and one of a kind feature.

We look forward to continuing this art form, retaining its roots and what makes it unique, while also modernizing it with updated colour palettes, trialing new techniques and creating unique products that are always one of a kind.