Rising Stars: Meet Angaea of Durham

Today we’d like to introduce you to Angaea.

Hi Angaea, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
In one medium, bookbinding brought together all the creative skills I’ve learned throughout my life—drawing, painting, sculpture, sewing, weaving, writing, and fiber arts. I fell in love with the process and all the possibilities it offered. I started Gaea Bound as a macgyvered “bindery”, but it was more like an old coffee shack filled with a handful of art materials and drying fibers, nestled in the jungle of Hawaii. I didn’t have any of the beautiful, professional, and expensive equipment typically found in a bindery. Still, I was able to reinvent ways to make books and incorporate the natural abundance around me into my process.

Due to housing insecurity brought on by Hawaii’s growing tourism industry, I moved around frequently. Gaea Bound became more of a liminal space for my creative works than a physical studio practice. Without a stable workspace, I adapted by aligning my creative process with the outdoors—an intuitively indigenous approach—often working with whatever materials were readily available. Now that I live in North Carolina, Gaea Bound has found a new home at the Liberty Arts Center in Durham. The scenery may be different, but my art continues to reflect what matters most to me.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I’m starting to understand the meaning of generational wealth and generational trauma. You’re either gonna inherit land, a business, a car, or you’re gonna inherit the struggles of your own historically oppressed ancestors. I recognize that I was born after a cultural genocide of my homeland, where my people’s names, lands, and culture were stolen, buried, and forgotten for three hundred years. And as a descendant, my struggles involve rediscovering my vibrant culture through an indigenous lense.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I call myself a Book Artist and most people don’t understand what that means until I place one of my “books”, or something that alludes to one, in their lap. There are antlers sticking out, the paper is made from seaweed and mulberry, and the spine is woven from banana and palm. I’ve made books that stretch into bat wings, books that have calloused skins, books that weave themselves into a spiderweb. I’ve always challenged myself to reimagine the structure of a book and utilize methods from my Filipino background or Pacific Island culture. Just like my ancestors, I observe my surroundings, seek what is abundant in nature, and decide what I am capable of achieving with just using my hands.

Naturally, I discovered other mediums that cross-pollinate with bookbinding such as papermaking and fiber arts. I love that they both invite farming as a creative practice. I used to teach papermaking to all ages at the Donkey Mill Art Center when I lived in Hawaii, a hybridized process that combined Japanese, Hawaiian, and Western papermaking methods. Now that I live in North Carolina, I’m preparing to teach papermaking with natural fibers from my art studio at the Liberty Arts Center in Durham.

What matters most to you? Why?
I think what matters to me right now is keeping true to my practice and following my own North Star.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.gaeabound.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gaeabound/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@angaeacuna8833