back to the invention of paper itself in# China around 2,000 years ago many cultures around the world have# developed their own unique styles.
Special correspondent Cat Wise recently# visited an artist whose paper cutting## is inspired by the natural beauty and# the people of the Pacific Northwest.
It’s part of our arts and culture series, Canvas.
CAT WISE: Every morning, artist and author# Nikki McClure takes a long walk in the woods## surrounding her home in Olympia, Washington.
She# feeds the birds and wildlife that dwell here, and## spends some time on the beach just steps from her# front door.
Inspiration for her art is everywhere.
NIKKI MCCLURE, Author and Artist:# By the time I have taken that walk,## an idea or a story will have shown itself# CAT WISE: McClure begins with a sketch,# which she transfers to black paper,## and then begins to work her magic with her# knife.
Cut by tiny cut for nearly 30 years,## McClure has revealed the world# she sees and the creatures in it.
NIKKI MCCLURE: My work is usually all one piece.# It’s all connected, because we all are co CAT WISE: McClure is the author and illustrator# of 15 books, and she has collaborated on several## more, including The New York Times’ bestseller# “All in a Day” with author Cynthia Rylant.
She also sells her original paper cut art,# prints, and a yearly calendar.
McClure’s## deep connection to nature and her surroundings# can be traced to her early years in Olympia,## when she studied natural history# at the Evergreen State College.
NIKKI MCCLURE: I just kept drawing and drawing# and drawing and drawing every stick, every every insect, every bird.
It focused# and trained my eye to see details,## and then trained my hand to draw those details.
CAT WISE: After graduating in 1991,# she began working at the Washington## Department of Ecology and was immersed# in Olympia’s vibrant music and art scene.
NIKKI MCCLURE: We all lived downtown, and# these apartment buildings kind of all together,## it was so spontaneous and alive.
And the way that# you communicated was through song or CAT WISE: For a time, McClure also wrote and# performed music and lived next to one of the## most famous musicians to come out of Olympia# during that era, Kurt Cobain of the band Nirvana.
NIKKI MCCLURE: So, I moved into this house,# and Kurt lived behind, and I shared the wall,## and I could hear him play his songs# through the wall.
Seeing them play,## there was this strong connection in this house.
CAT WISE: After deciding to become a full-time# artist, McClure began experimenting with paper## cutting.
She self-publishing her first# book, “Apple” for children in 1996.
NIKKI MCCLURE: I found that making art# was a more calming way to communicate.## I am singing my songs still,# but there is a child in a lap,## in a home, and it’s ultimately like,# that’s where I want to sing my songs.
They call these X-Acto, knives,## but they’re not really exa CAT WISE: On a recent morning, I# joined McClure at her desk as she## worked on a piece that might# end up in a future calendar.
NIKKI MCCLURE: This was this one# morning where I was swimming,## and I had my arms in front of me.
The way# that the they were all squiggled.
They were no longer# solid, even though I knew they were solid.
CAT WISE: How do you know where to# cut to make the image reveal itself?
NIKKI MCCLURE: I don’t.
You just have to trust it.
What I really like about this process# is that there are so many mistakes made.
CAT WISE: Really?
that, I don’t quite work out.
But you just keep# going.
And, really, it’s just a piece of paper.
CAT WISE: But, oh, what she can do with# a piece of paper.
Many of her works are## focused on her experiences as# a mother and raising her son,## Finn, with her husband, Jay T.# Scott, a woodworker in Olympia.
NIKKI MCCLURE: It is such a remarkable gift to# participate in this life as it developed and## formed and grew and started asking questions like,# “Mama, is it summer yet?
Mama, is it summer yet?## Not yet little one, but the buds are swelling.# Soon, new leaves will unfold.
Mama, is it summer## yet?
Not yet, little one, but the squirrel is# building her nest.
Soon, her babies will be born.”
CAT WISE: In “What Will These# Hands Make?”
released in 2020,## McClure highlights a family and their# community as they prepare for a NI KKI MCCLURE: This is the center map spread# from the book “What Will These Hands Make?”
And## it basically tells a story of this family, and# here they are right here.
They are going grandma’s house — there’s grandma baking# — all the way across town to this cake,## because there’s going to be a big# party at grandma’s house later.
CAT WISE: The community, filled with# people who make things with their NIKKI MCCLURE: Here’s my friend# Mariela’s (ph) pottery studio.
CAT WISE: .. is fictional,# but many of the characters## and businesses are inspired by# our mutual homet NIKKI MCCLURE: Sometimes, I would row into town,## and I would row over and go to# the Brow CAT WISE: The real Browsers Bookshop# is one of the local businesses McClure## hand-delivers her calendars to each year.
NIKKI MCCLURE: Hey, Andrea.# I brought you more calendars.
Andrea Griffith is the store’s owner.
ANDREA GRIFFITH, Owner, Browsers Bookshop:# Nikki’s wo so tied to the natural world and she’s — I# think she teaches us how to see CA T WISE: Like many in Olympia, Griffith says she## feels a connection to McClure and the life# AN DREA GRIFFITH: Last month’s calendar was an# image of her son’s boat sailing kind of away## because her son was going to college.
He’s# leaving, so I think we’re all a little sad.
NIKKI MCCLURE: I guess what I want people to come# away with or to feel when they look at my work is## a sense of place and to calm down and slow down# and to just take a moment.
Our lives are so fast.
Everything’s just, you know, now, now, now, now,# now that we forget even what time of season it## is.
The picture can transport them to a quiet,# slow, still moment just for a brief second.
CAT WISE: McClure has been working# on illustrations for a new book,## which will be released in March.
For the “PBS NewsHour,” I’m Cat# Wise in Olympia, Washington.