Pam DeLuco
Pam DeLuco, a papermaker and owner of Shotwell Paper Mill (San Francisco, CA), is the architect of the project Paper Dolls: stories from women who served which contains 20 stories spanning more than 40 years of service and all branches of the military. These stories represent the collective experience of women in the armed forces. Using paper created from military uniforms as a starting point, DeLuco asked women veterans to share personal stories, donate uniforms, and participate in the hand making of these carefully conceived limited edition books in an attempt to change people’s preconceived ideas of women in the military. DeLuco completed her studies in Notre Dame, IN and Los Altos, CA. After years of traveling the world to explore indigenous artisans and handicrafts, DeLuco settled in San Francisco intending to live a handmade life.
It is my mission to surround myself with handmade items using raw materials and handmade tools from sources I can trace. My work is a lot about the process and the satisfaction that comes from knowing I am able to produce many everyday household items.2
Besides a textile/book artist and co-founder of Shotwell Paper Mill, she is the founder/art director for BANDmade Books (bandmadebooks.com). Her bees provide wax for the hand-spun linen thread for bindings and her silkworms provide silk for the headbands of the bound books.
