Perfect Paper
The first paper mill in Britain is reported to have been built in 1490, but the mill on the St Cuthbert's site was far more recent, arriving in 1736 - only 300 years ago! St Cuthbert's is now famous for two kinds of paper: the artists' paper that we study in MoM is second to none, and formed on a machine built in 1907; but in 1991 the mill made a major investment in pre-impregnated papers, and with the latest machinery it churns out literally hundreds of miles of a type of paper that is used to give modern furniture and kitchen worksurfaces the textured patterns that resemble veneer, but at a fraction of the cost.
There is another small section to this film featuring artist Simon Palmer drawing in ink. Simon is a brilliant and now famous (which means expensive) water colour artist, and this footage was lifted from "Visions of Saltaire", a film that Simon Ashcroft (the Magic of Making's creator) had made with BBC Producer Gordon Carr to accompany an exhibition of Palmer's work at a London gallery. Palmer is seen drawing at Saltaire, the village founded in 1853 by the enlightened industrialist, Sir Titus Salt. Saltaire is now a famous World Heritage Site; history does not report what became of Simon and Gordon's film!
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Production Notes
Locations:
Inveresk PLC, St Cuthbert's Mill, Wells, Somerset;
Salts Mill, Saltaire, West Yorkshire;
Forestry Commission woodland on Exmoor;
Simon Ashcroft's garden, Banstead, Surrey.