Meet Jaz Graf

Today we’re excited to be connecting with Jaz Graf again. If you haven’t already, we suggest you check out our prior conversation with them here.

Jaz, we are so thrilled to be connecting again and can’t wait to hear about all the amazing things you have been up to. Before we jump into all of that, some of our readers might have missed our prior interview, so can you take a moment to reintroduce yourself?
I investigate ideas of legacy by way of materials and thru embodied practice. This manifests as artworks, experiential research, collaborative projects, and educational outreach.

I trained as a printmaker, which led me to be critical of the types of paper I use. Increasingly, I make my own paper from natural and local materials. Paper, especially handmade, is not merely a substrate, but functions as being both subject and object in my art. I am fascinated by the material capacities of handmade paper to record time and ecologies, tracing a dialogue between nature and civilizations.

About 6 years ago, I began a project of pulping worn, sacred robes given to me by Buddhist monks and making it into paper sculpture and books. One of the highlights of my research was living at Wat Songdhammakalyani, a bhikkhuni (female monk) monastery in Nakhon Pathom, Thailand and transforming their robes into handmade paper on-site. We are used to seeing male monks in orange robes, but in Thailand, it is technically illegal for a woman to wear these robes and to be ordained as a monk. In my work, it is important for me to map out systems of power and gender associated with my ancestral lineage, especially from a transnational perspective. From the material, from the experience, the nature of impermanence and the metaphysical possibilities continue to expand my practice.

Awesome, so we reached out because we wanted to hear all about what you have been up to since we last connected.
Since our interview, I have channeled my energies into working with metals, glass, pulps, and prints. I made paper in the field and taught workshops across the USA, Thailand and Jamaica. During my fellowship at Dieu Donné , a prestigious paper studio in Brooklyn, NY, I studied with master papermakers and collaborated with several artists. I shared my love of the craft by teaching at Penland School (NC) and at the Women’s Studio Workshop (NY). I had a custom fiber pulping machine built and took it across Thailand. There, I also practiced techniques and styles of making palm leaf manuscripts, a traditional sacred book form used throughout Asia. Many of these types of books are forbidden to be touched by women, and so I began on a series of these types of books as a form of contemporary art. It is my way of reclaiming it and recontextualizing its importance. One of my manuscripts is currently featured in an exhibition at the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts in New York City.
In the Spring, I will be speaking on a panel, “Mapping Personal Histories / Navigating Political Tides,” in San Juan, Puerto Rico at the SGC International Conference. Through a diverse array of processes and projects drawing upon familial and historical research, I connect the personal and the political.
It’s been a busy time!

We have now arrived at one of our favorite parts of the interview – the lightning round. We’ll ask you a few quick questions to give us all some fun insights about you.

Favorite Movie: The Terminator. I mean the original soundtrack is epic.

Favorite Book: The Little Prince / Le Petit Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (both the French and English versions)

Favorite Band or Artist: SAULT

Sweet or Savory: spicy

Favorite Sport (to watch): breakdancing

Favorite Sport (to play): badminton

Did you play sports growing up (if so which ones): field hockey and lacrosse

As a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up: In Kindergarten I wanted to be an Astronaut, then I wanted to be a brain surgeon by the second grade.

French Fries or Onion Rings: onion rings, always

Favorite Cartoon growing up: too hard to decide between ThunderCats and JEM

Favorite Childhood movie: Flatliners, which happened to be my first date movie

Favorite Breakfast Food: Jok (Thai rice porridge) with all the trimmings, esp fresh ginger

What are you most excited about in the coming year?
I am looking forward to completing some exciting and challenging commissioned projects. All of them are books, which have taken time, not only because they involve a myriad of components, but also because of the intimate relationship a reader can have with a book. Often held, books are experienced by multiple senses and they seem more vulnerable in that way. One of my projects is a book of haikus in collaboration with Ayya Sudhamma Bhikkhuni. I was really excited that we were able to make paper and tell stories together over the summer in Charlotte, North Carolina. Another book edition I’m working on features pulp prints, in which I use pigmented and liquified linen pulp that is fine enough to generate silkscreened patterns. These manuscripts are over 2 feet long, and are backed by vintage silk, and incorporate my handmade papers formed in both Eastern and Western styles. Several of the commissioned works are slated to become part of Special Collections and Rare Book Libraries across the country. I am very proud of my book babies!

Website: https://www.jazgraf.com

Instagram: @jazgraf

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasmine-graf-76714385/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pMryzGS9rQ

Image Credits
Profile image credit: www.LaosFois.com