Feza Aygın Sanıvar makes handmade paper from local plants

Feza Aygın Sanıvar makes handmade paper from local plants

Feza Aygın Sanıvar is a Cypriot artist and researcher, recognized as the first practitioner in Cyprus to produce handmade paper from local plants. Her work is rooted in experimental research focused on extracting fibers from native flora and transforming them into durable, exhibition-quality paper surfaces.

A significant aspect of her innovation lies in preserving the natural pigments of plant fibers—most notably through her development of naturally green paper made from grass fibers without the use of artificial dyes. She has produced handmade papers from a wide range of plants, including Bougainvillea (Cemile), Datura (thorn apple), molehiya, fig tree, mulberry, radish, straw, Chinese lettuce, and Bird of Paradise. Through this work, she continues to expand the material possibilities of plant-based paper within contemporary art.

We first met Feza in September 2018, when my late partner, Margaret Sheard, sat with her and discussed her paper-making practice and the beautiful artworks she creates from it. You can read about this fascinating conversation by clicking here.  Also shown is a video we made at the time, in which Feza demonstrates her early work and explains her paper-making process.

For more information about Feza and her work, please visit her Facebook page

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