Vietnamese Dó Paper
1 sheet
40 x 30cm
Perfect support for gouache or acrylic paint.
Dó paper is a Vietnamese traditional hand-made paper that first appeared in the 3rd century. It is a resilient, chemical-free paper, that is so durable that it could last up to 800 years. This type of paper was commonly used in Vietnamese folk art.
Dó paper is made from the bark of the Rhamnoneuron balansae tree (in Vietnamese “Dó” tree), found in the Northern parts of Vietnam. There is traditionally a process of over 100 steps to produce Dó paper. However, it has nowadays been reduced to ten steps.
First, the bark is soaked in limewater for three months. Then, the black outer bark is husked off and ground by mortar and pestle before being blended with a viscous substance made from a plant belonging to the family Verbenaceae. This mixture is diluted to form a slurry. A bamboo mold (Vietnamese: liềm xeo) is dipped into the vat of slurry and removed. Paper fibers adhere to the mold in a thin sheet that is then pressed, dried, rolled, and dried again out in the sun.
