- Take pretty rolling papers to the next level with thought-provoking art on papers that also give back.
- With every pack of Paula Flores Collection rolling papers sold, House of Puff donates a portion of the proceeds to the Pachamama Alliance.
- Both Paula’s art and Pachamama urge us to forge better relationships with each other and the environment we all share.
7-minute read
Give Back Effortlessly with Pretty Rolling Papers
How do you top pretty rolling papers? Add a giveback supporting social justice. That’s what House of Puff does with our artist series rolling papers, including our Chris Wilson Collection Rolling Papers. These papers put art at your fingertips while they simultaneously support important causes, like the reform of solitary confinement and the preservation of Indigenous cultures. And the works chosen for our papers isn’t just any art. Every artwork points to a way that we can better our world—like our collab with internationally acclaimed contemporary artist, Paula Flores.
Pretty Rolling Papers that Make a Difference
Paula’s work inspires profound introspection. With each brushstroke, she aims to build meaningful connections between humans and the broader world we all share. What better way to achieve this goal than by championing the rights of Indigenous communities in the Amazon rainforest? In supporting their autonomy and cultural heritage, we affirm our commitment to supporting the rights of Indigenous people to defend their land and culture—on their terms.
Why Donate to the Pachamama Alliance?
Just as Paula Flores’s artwork aims to reconnect humanity with the world around us, the Pachamama Alliance strives to restore our relationship with the earth and each other. Derived from the Indigenous term for “the spirit of mother earth,” the word Pachamama embodies the ethos of honoring and preserving our planet. This nonprofit originated from a partnership with the Achuar people of the Amazon rainforest in response to their urgent need to keep their land and culture intact.
A Whole New World
The Achuar only came into contact with the outside world in the 1970s. When they became aware of adverse effects on neighboring lands, the Achuar used Ayahuasca to consult their ancestors. Based on their vision ceremonies, they reached out to those outside of the Amazon to shift the dominant culture from consumption, exploitation, and extraction to one honoring and sustaining all forms of life. To accomplish this mission, the Pachamama Alliance was born. Since then, they’ve inspired and trained people worldwide to regenerate our planet’s ecosystems and bring justice to our communities.
Saving Our World Through Pretty Rolling Papers and Interspecies Communication
We couldn’t think of a more fitting nonprofit than the Pachamama Alliance to partner with Paula’s painting, Grass Level. But you might want to take a puff before reading our interview with her below because Paula takes environmentalism to a whole new level. She’s not just working to save the planet. Similar to the Achuar and Pachamama, her intention is to do that by unlocking more interspecies communication. Here’s how Paula explains her art.
Plant and Animal Life is Central to Your Work as an Artist—How Did that Start?
It started in my childhood. My grandparents told me stories about how they spent hours playing outside. They talked about plants, trees, fruits, animals, cycles, and events in nature I knew little or nothing about. Throughout my life, I listened to these stories and started to ask more questions of my own. What fascinates me most is the wisdom that non-human life forms have. Many of them dedicate their lives to making sure there’s a habitable future for all life forms, not just for their own species. That made me want to learn, not only of the botanical aspects of plants, but more about the infinite interconnectedness of all species—and what that means for us.
Grass Level, Makes these More than Pretty Rolling Papers—Tell Us about It
Grass Level was one of my first attempts to try to unblock my communication with other species. At that point, I was limited to humans and dogs. One of my life dreams is to help establish conscious, intimate interspecies relationships. For that, I had to let go of the hierarchical concept that’s imposed on many of us in our education. And it wasn’t hard to do.
Being One with the Earth
When you learn about the life energy of the world, it becomes obvious that there aren’t hierarchies between species. Otherwise, the natural world wouldn’t exist. I believe that hierarchical systems are one of the main problems that some humans have created to justify all kinds of destruction and violence. I want to be able to get into a free state of mind that allows me to connect deeply with other life forms and natural entities.
How can Grass Level Help People Understand Your Work as a Whole?
Grass Level brings many of the different components of my work together. The painting explores one of the key intentions of my work: to explore the diversity in nature that’s often not immediately visible. It was also an essential piece in my development as an artist. The materials in it are very diverse, with a lot of detail. That’s something that’s always present in my work and that relates directly to nature.
Where Is The Original Of Grass Level Now?
Grass Level is now part of a private collection in California.
What Do You Wish More People Knew About Contemporary Art?
The art world is huge and full of amazing, very diverse art. You can always find new art that’s related to your interests or aesthetics.
Tell Us about the Palette that Makes These Pretty Rolling Papers So Uplifting
My palette shifts depending on the materials I’m working with. When I work with plants or mushrooms, I like to respect the environment they prefer to grow in. When I incorporate live organisms, I prefer not to expose them to synthetic materials during their growth. So, I use a lot of natural materials and earth tones. But, in general, my work is very bright and colorful.
Inspired by Mexican Markets
I have a natural attraction to color. That stems from the open air markets that I’ve frequented in Mexico since I was a little girl. I use color to depict the diversity in nature—one that’s sometimes not visible at first glance. When people think of nature, they often think only of green and brown tones. But if you take a closer look, nature includes way more colors and textures than we can even imagine.
Do You Have Any Smoking-Related Rituals?
The most important one for me is at the end of the day when I’m finished with work. I like to get into comfortable clothes, make a lemonade, and look out the window. Another one is when I’m stuck in a project, trying to solve creative issues. I’ll smoke, get into the shower, and use mint or rosemary essential oil on my hair. This ritual is magical for me and usually produces great solutions.
What Changes in Human Behavior would You Most Like to See in the Next 10 Years?
Appreciating Nature
The first is to establish personal relationships with nature. That’s especially hard in cities. I soon hope to make work that opens this path up—not just for me, but for anyone who’s interested in having deeper personal experiences with nature on its own terms. I want to let go of all the impositions of white, Western, colonialist, and anthropocentric views of the world.
Decrease Wasteful Consumption
The second change I’d like to see is way less consumption.
Slow Down
The third is to slow down into rhythms that are more in sync with nature. I think the speed of modern life is a major problem for most of us. We live at a pace that doesn’t wait for anything or anyone. It doesn’t leave room for being patient with life to grow as and when it’s supposed to. That tends to mold our perception of the world into something aggressive, where life isn’t really respected.
How can We Keep Up with Your Work?
Follow me on Instagram, Vimeo, and my website, where you can buy my original fine art. Shop the Paula Flores Collection & Support the Pachamama Alliance
