The rice paper I use in this series of recent work is called tengucho in Japanese. In its lightest weight, which I often use, it is the thinnest paper in existence. I cherish its transparency, its ethereal quality. Also, because it is made with very long fibers, it is deceptively strong. Playing with it, I arrived at this pleating technique, which allows it to float and opens up three dimensional space. This new series of works is based on the exploitation of such gifts. 

Seeing these recent pieces at the same time as the silk paintings, a much older series, has made me reflect on what have been some of the driving impulses behind my work over the years.

Looking beyond the obvious differences, common ground begins to emerge. In the silk paintings I see a very explicit desire to play with depth and space, which, in this case, is invented and illusory. In the cloud-like shapes I see a love for the ethereal, for transparency, for what is barely there. The washes of color are applied in such a way that, rather than obscuring the nature of the silk itself, instead act as the catalyst that reveals and enhances it. The sensuality of the texture, the weave, become main protagonists. 

Both bodies of work involve a tension between the illusory, the ephemeral, and the deliberate exploitation of the qualities of the material at hand. In other words, the barely there coupled with the very there.

Catalina Arocena
February, 2026