First Assembly

The first piece using both materials together. Stacked cardboard painted dark, paper mache strip down the center.

The black paint creates a visual reminiscent of shou sugi ban, the Japanese technique of charring cedar to preserve it. The burning transforms the wood - blackening the surface while revealing the grain. Here the paint does something similar. It unifies the cardboard so the corrugated structure becomes the subject. The rhythm of the layers emerges rather than disappears.

The paper mache turned out better than expected. The dried clay has a rough, almost geological quality. It reads like stone, like something weathered rather than built.

Four rivets down the center strip. They suggest order, imply fastening, but they're decorative - a nod to industrial hardware without the function. They punctuate the vertical without explaining it.

The contrast carries the piece. Dark and light. Structured and raw. Rhythm and texture. Two discarded materials, now in conversation.