Paper Sculptors Ply Their Trade

This Art Form Unfolds In Many Different Ways

In this post, we are exploring four different artists who have chosen paper sculpture as their medium.

But don’t think they are at all similar in their approach or the result. It is always amazing how many different ways artists can use a medium to create their own style and fulfill their personal artistic vision.

Intricate Detail is a Cut Above

Lisa Lloyd Paper Sculpture flying bird

Lisa Lloyd is a designer from the UK. She creates amazing cut paper sculptures. Her work includes gorgeous birds, like the yellow and blue one above.

Her career started in a very different way–as an animator. Now, inspired by nature, she works as a designer and creates these wonderful paper sculptures, that she calls “paper craft”, often for clients and magazines.

Some of her works is much more stylized, as you can see in “Fruishi” below.

Lisa Lloyd paper sculpture fruishi

Whether on the more realistic end of the scale, stylized, or the whimsical, the detail in her work is amazing.

Check out the photos below to get a sense of scale–pay particular notice that she is applying these tiny triangles of paper with tweezers.

Lisa Lloyd work in progress

I find the greatest inspiration for my work comes from nature. I love the patterns, symmetry, colour, geometry and texture. I love the detail. I then try to give it a modern twist, taking inspiration from the design world- such as fashion, interiors and graphic design.

Sometimes a Single Sheet of Paper is All It Takes

Contrast Lloyd’s work with that of Vietnamese paper sculptor, Nguyen Hung Cuong, who has created this piece in the origami style–folded from a single piece of paper.

Nguyen Hun Cuong paper sculpture

This sculpture, titled “Fly High, Dreamers!” shows a hand holding a crane, a rider on top of the crane holds a smaller crane. It bears repeating that this was created from a single sheet of paper, and no scissors at all.

Other examples of his work include a tiny horse folded out of Vietnamese currency

Nguyen Hun Cuong paper sculpture horse

And works using multiple sheets of paper to create scenes, such as an eagle swooping down to capture a crane

Nguyen Hung Cuong origami eagle

Snip Snip Snip

Bovey Lee is an artist who also works in paper. Her work is intricate as well, and includes a lot of cutting–but in quite a different way than Lloyd’s.

Bovey Lee paper sculpture Eternity-The Rescuer

Born in Hong Kong, but residing in the US since 1993, Lee painstakingly creates scenes of cities and other themes that take on the feel of a tiny roller coaster with all their twists and turns.

Her intricate works incorporates cityscapes, nature, and even wedding cakes, as you can see above. All are cut from rice paper.

Bovey Lee paper sculpture the Skateboarder detail

 

Bovey Lee paper sculpture The Tightrope Walker

Some of Ms. Lee’s more recent works include this cosmoplitan bonsai composition titled Bonsai–Wired Cities

bovey lee paper sculpture bonsai wired cities

Paper Sculpture on a Larger Scale

Warren King also cuts paper for his sculptures. But on his scale is bigger in both thickness and height.

Warren King paper sculpture group

He creates his sculptures from cardboard, many of which, including those shown here are life-sized.

Warren King paper sculpture

An American who lives in Stockholm, King explores his Chinese ancestry with these works.

Warren King paper sculpture, detail

They may be silent, but can’t you hear them thinking? I think they’d be saying to their descendant, “Good Job, Warren.”

 


Love the variety of paper sculpture that abounds? We do, too. Read more posts about these talented artists by clicking here.

All artwork is copyright the respective artists.

You can see more of Ms. Lloyd’s work on her website.

See more of Nguyen Hung Cuong’s work here

Bovey Lee’s work is available to view on her website.

Be sure to “Like” Warren Lee’s Facebook page where you can see more of his work.