Running from June 7 through 15, 2008, the summit included demonstrations by Japanese papermakers, lectures, workshops, gallery exhibitions, discussion forums, a washi fashion show, and many other opportunities to gain new appreciation for Japanese paper. For those of us who are washi geeks, it was pure heaven. Even if you are smitten with an incurable love of washi, you may be wondering, why hold a summit? The goals were outlined as follows: - To draw attention to the vast creative potential of washi - To underline its practicality and sustainability—for 1,400 years—in a vulnerable world - To encourage the perseverant papermakers in rural Japan, to show them how artists worldwide are inspired by their paper - To honor artists from around the world who are discovering and using its unique characteristics in exceptional ways Aided by Sigrid Blohm, Japanese Paper Place's fine paper manager, Jacobi began raising washi consciousness even before the summit began. Initial support came from the Edward Day Gallery and blossomed into interest from more than 35 galleries, which held washi-related exhibitions in connection world washi summit 2008 Essays by Nancy Jacobi, Paul Denhoed, and others. Toronto: Japanese Paper Place, 2008. 57 pages, 7 x 9 x ¼ inches (paperback), color photographs throughout, including selected images from all of the participating galleries. Each copy contains an original wood engraving on washi by one of three artists included in the summit exhibitions, Will Rueter, Brian Kelley, or George Walker. $25 (US or Canadian). Available through Japanese Paper Place, tel 416-538-9669, www.worldwashisummit.com. An outdoor papermaking demonstration in Port Hope, Ontario, near Toronto. From left: Hiroaki Imai, Shinji Hayashi, and Hiroshi Tamura. Photo by Peter Jones, June 2008. All other photos by and courtesy of the author unless otherwise noted. Catherine Heard, Arteries and Veins after Gerard Lairesse, Anatomia Humani Corporis, 1685, installed at Edward Day Gallery, Toronto. summer 2009 - 41 Edward Day Gallery's exhibition, The Washi Challenge, showed a wide range of work, from Joyce McClelland's needlepoint with shifu (woven paper cloth) to Cybèle Young's incredible miniature movie projector assemblage made of washi. Meanwhile, the Ontario Craft Council initiated a "lockdown" where artists were holed up for days to create works out of washi that were then auctioned off. Other venues sponsored gallery talks and demonstrations. Printmaking was particularly well represented, with Debora Oden demonstrating her unique intaglio techniques at the Toronto School of Art, Tanja Softi´c lecturing on her prints at Japanese Paper Place, and Kavavaow Mannomee's showing Inuit printmaking techniques using washi at Feheley Fine Arts, to name a few. Events took place at many important Toronto institutions. Hiroko Karuno gave a sold-out talk on shifu at the Textile Museum of Canada and a packed demonstration the next day on spinning paper thread. Sara Fradkin gave a workshop on making wearable washi slippers at the Bata Shoe Museum. At the Japan Foundation, Paul Denhoed lectured on his experiences living and working in Japanese papermaking villages, and London bookbinder Rob Shepherd lectured on chiyogami (patternprinted Japanese decorative paper). Chief Librarian Jack Howard offered a rare look at washi treasures in the H. H. Mu Far Eastern Library of the Royal Ontario Museum. A washi bazaar at the Gladstone Hotel offered a diverse array of items for sale. The strange contents of my suitcase came into play when I gave a workshop at the Contemporary Textile Studio Co-op on naturally dyed Japanese papers. Japanese Paper Place sponsored many workshops, sixteen in total, with wonderful titles such as "Konnyaku, the Washi-Transforming Starch" and "Wood and Washi: Sustainability in a Box." The most moving moment of the week's events came during the final wrap-up at the Japan Foundation, when the visiting with the summit. Artists from Canada, the United States, Japan, China, Scotland, Iceland, Finland, Mexico, South Africa, and Chile participated, making it truly a global event. Sponsors for the events included the Moriki Paper Co., which represents the majority of Japan's independent papermakers and supplies the bulk of Japanese Paper Place's papers. With funding from the Japan Foundation, Jacobi was able to bring in three papermakers from Japan: Hiroaki Imai from Oguni in Niigata, Hiroshi Tamura from Kochi, and Shinji Hayashi of Kurotani. \[Editor's note: In this article, Japanese names are westernized: given name followed by family name. Also, please note that a paper sample by Imai-san and photographs of these three papermakers are included in the Summer 2007 issue of Hand Papermaking which focuses on washi.\] The highlight of the summit for many was watching the three of them demonstrate their sheet-forming techniques, which are remarkable for their subtle but notable differences. Aside from their own presentations, the papermakers went to nearly every event, personifying the spirit of the summit. The audiences were suitably impressed by their skills, but the comment I heard the most among the crowd was, "I didn't expect them to be so handsome." Talking with Paul Denhoed and Maki Yamashita, who arranged for their visit and acted as interpreters and guides, I learned that they had initially asked papermakers of various ages, and it just happened that the three who accepted were all in their thirties. It was also a coincidence that they had each chosen to become papermakers, rather than having been born into papermaking families. These chance factors helped to create a hopeful atmosphere for the future of washi rather than one of anxiety over Japanese papermaking's diminishing ranks. The audiences warmed to their smiles and palpable, earnest love of the craft. Extending out from hip Queen Street West, galleries showed high-caliber artworks by washi veterans and newcomers. The papermakers were asked to speak about what the summit had meant to them. Tamura-san, his eyes welling with tears, spoke poignantly about the sense of connectedness—of seeing what people made with his paper—something he had had almost no exposure to until then. Working as they do in relative isolation, each of the papermakers expressed how important it had been for them to connect with the wider world of washi lovers and users, and even to talk to one another about the challenges they faced. I think it would be fair to say that no one was prepared for the rush of emotion this generated among the crowd. Anyone who regrets having missed the summit can still get a feeling for it from World Washi Summit 2008, a catalog published in a limited edition of 1,500 copies. After the summit an exhausted but elated Jacobi told me: "I think it is an idea that could be replicated in other places. The feedback has been very positive, and at the big outdoor art show this weekend, many of the artists were apparently asked, ‘Is this washi?' which is a first for the public at large." Debora Oden is demonstrating her distinctive intaglio techniques at Proof Gallery, Toronto. Libby Hague's large-scale installation, Spectacular setting 2 hrs from Huntsville, hot and cold running water, wild life, must see, using Okawara paper, installed at Lennox Contemporary, Toronto. Photo by and courtesy of the artist. Celebrating the success of the summit on the final evening with sake at the Japan Foundation in Toronto. From left: Hiroaki Imai, Shinji Hayashi, Hiroshi Tamura, and Nancy Jacobi.