The Story
Born in Burnie.
Nurtured by ingenuity.
Tasmania’s Creative Paper is at a watershed moment. With Darren Simpson at the helm for two decades, he was the early driving force behind the enterprise’s success.
A unique collaboration
The beginnings
Amidst the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, the closure of Burnie’s Makers Workshop presented a unique opportunity and an unexpected partnership for Darren Simpson and Big hART. They acquired the business and its equipment at a nominal cost, setting the stage for a new chapter. Combining Big hART’s expertise in community development with a collaborative and empathetic approach, they embarked on a journey to consult a community deeply invested in the mill’s rich history. This collective effort paved the way for the revival of Creative Paper, a much-loved business deeply intertwined with North West Tasmania’s creative landscape.
Borne out of a desire to preserve the fading legacy of skilled handcrafts that once thrived in the region, Creative Paper now stands proudly in its new home on an industrial site in the northwestern region of Lutrawita/Tasmania. At the helm of this endeavour is master paper maker Darren Simpson, whose expertise in traditional paper practices spans back to 1996.
Creative paper is
deeply entwined in
North West Tasmania’s
creative landscape
Artisan
The future
The transition back to making paper activates a new Big hART venture, Artisan, a community development and small enterprise incubation hub. The future of Creative Paper comes with an enhanced visual, digital, and product re-brand. Integrating a bespoke and custom-made art making paper range targeting a new market of artists while retaining its’ place-based and ecologically focused identity.
