Paper Cutting Into 2010

Can you have too much of a good thing? I hope not, because my first paper cut in ages was definitely a good thing from my viewpoint. It was fun to do, and the results were attractive enough. Now that I’m in the paper cutting zone, so to speak, I thought I might as well exploit it and do something for the dawn of the new year.

This time a got a little more ambitions, and really didn’t even think about the fact that this would have to eventually be cut out in tiny slivers of paper. Instead I just got an image in mind and scribbled until what I had was a base sketch for a decent illustration. Then it was a simple matter of executing this illustration as a paper cut. Not really simple, but hey! I’m allowed my 1st of January bravado just like eveyone else.

After another few hours of careful cutting, hunched over a sheet of paper with a craft knife, this is what I turned out and I am pleasantly surprised. You see, while the christmas paper cut was fairly planned from the beginning as a flat paper cut design, this one had more complex bits that were layerd, so all the decisions of what had to be cut and not cut out, were taken while I was cutting. I’m happy with the result.

What I like about this one is that it’s as non-traditional a paper cutting as you can get. Every art form has its conventional motifs and symbols. Paper cuts, being a fairly traditional craft, usualy feature very classical themes, animals, patterns, and very arts-and-crafts imagery. This one has a ray gun!

A Very Happy New Year to you all. It’s the future! May your days be filled with the interestingly unconventional, and may all your paper cuts have spaceships.

Samir