Turn waste paper into... paintings

Regeneration for paper

As one of the founding members of Nha Cuoi, young artist Thai Van was the one who came up with the idea of turning waste paper into paintings. The young artist said: “We not only want to create an inspiring creative space, but also want to bring meaningful experiences to visitors. The idea of making a workshop on painting from recycled paper was born from that.”

The activity of making paintings from discarded paper has existed for a long time, is diverse and attractive, especially in Western countries. “In Vietnam, this idea has been implemented into many different types of paintings such as paper collage, paper cutting, paper sculpture. However, to make it easier for visitors, especially children, to access, I decided to choose paper pulp painting for the workshop,” added Ms. Thai Van.

To realize this idea, the young female artist has researched and learned how to process waste paper, mix colors and bind paper pulp to create colorful and eye-catching paintings. It is impossible to keep waste paper in its current state, all recycled paper from old books, newspapers, and cardboard will be processed before being turned into paintings.

Painter Nguyen Van Tien, a colleague of artist Thai Van, said: “We carefully process the paper so that the color of the pulp is even. First, the paper is cut into small pieces and soaked in water. Then, this part of the paper is ground very finely to create smoothness and uniformity, and to remove the ink color. After being ground, the paper is dried to a certain humidity level, and the finished product is mixed with acrylic paint and milk glue in the appropriate ratio.”

The young artists

Making recycled paper paintings requires patience and meticulousness because after mixing the pigment and glue, the paper mixture will become thick. At this point, the person doing it must use tweezers to separate and fix each part of the paper pulp in the appropriate position as well as mix colors to create unique paintings.

Excitedly completing the colorful paintings of townhouses with her friends, Quynh Nhi, 11 years old (Phuoc Vinh ward), shared: “I really like drawing, but this is the first time I have participated in a workshop on drawing with recycled paper. I was very surprised because from discarded paper and old cardboard, I can create beautiful paintings. To me, these paintings are very meaningful.”

Like Quynh Nhu, this is the first time Bao Anh (10 years old) has created paintings from discarded paper. Carefully creating each window with paper, Bao Anh is absorbed in her work. Ms. Quynh, Bao Anh's parent, shared: "When I saw the activity of making paintings from recycled paper, I immediately registered my child to participate. Not only because my child loves colors and likes to draw, I also want my child to understand and love the environment more, even from the smallest things."

Not only Bao Anh's parents, but also the parents who let their children participate in the workshop felt that it was meaningful and practical to choose this new and interesting experience for their children during the summer. Artist Nguyen Van Tien added: "In addition to the main material of waste paper, we also guide the children on how to find natural and friendly materials such as branches, dry leaves, and pebbles to combine with the paintings. We hope that these small activities will bring new colors and understanding to the children."

Nowadays, recycling activities are increasingly valued as environmental pollution is becoming an alarming issue. Along with clothes, household appliances, old furniture, recycled products or decorations all bring economic value and are closely linked to protecting the living environment. Therefore, the workshop on making paintings from recycled paper is not only a simple craft experience, it is also a place to send messages from young artists to visitors, messages to inspire green living to the community.

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