Experiment 4 - Further paper experiments

Although I thought my papercraft experiment wasn't a complete success, I thought it would still be a worth pursuing further investigations into using and manipulating paper. At the beginning of my project, while I researching 3D forms (and artists who created geometric works out of paper) I came across a papercut by artist Joe Bagley, who had experimented by cutting into an origami crane. Although there was no tutorial to how he had created this piece, using a photograph from his website I was able to copy part of the pattern.

Joe Bagley, 2010. Origami paper crane skeleton

Joe Bagley, 2010. Origami paper crane skeleton  

My origami crane (made using a video tutorial online)

Unfolded paper crane - with pencil shapes drawn onto it

Shapes cut out of unfolded crane

Crane - re-folded

Originally I had the idea of making other simple origami bird forms and cutting into them using my own designs, but without the photo on Joe's website, I think I would have found it very difficult to establish which bits to cut out. If I wanted to invent a cutting pattern myself, it would take lots of trial and error- of folding, unfolding, and cutting. It would also take a good deal of pre-visualization - to know where to cut, and where the pattern would end up once it was folded again.

After having attempted this experiment, as well as my first experiment (paper craft) I have come to understand that although origami looks simple to make yourself, it is actually a very precise art, and that it takes a lot of practice and knowledge in order to know how to fully manipulate paper, and that it can be difficult to create yourself, even with the help of instructions.

Again, during my research into origami, I found a papercut of origami by artist Sarah Louise Matthews.

Sarah Louise Matthews, year unknown. Origami bird papercut

I enjoyed the graphical simplicity of the piece, so thought it would be an interesting idea to try and create a paper cut of a pigeon made from triangles. Also, having cut stencils before, I felt confident that papercutting was something I could achieve. I printed a scan of one of my pencil lines onto thicker card to assure the paper didn't rip whilst I was cutting it.

Sally Taylor, 2012. Pigeon pencil 'frame-work'

Sally Taylor, 2013. Pigeon papercut

I found it to be a close representation of the technique used in my FMP because of the strength of straight lines. Because I liked the effect the technique made so much, I decided to make another papercut, this time using an image from my Calendar for my Final Major Project.

Sally Taylor, 2013. February papercut

This technique, in a way, is like the opposite of how I have been creating things so far. Instead of making a form using the building of shapes, a material is cut into - you're manipulating a pre-existing plane, and it becomes more an exploration of the creative of negative space.

For my next experiment, I decided to explore the further uses of paper, by using my paper cuts in a diorama to create depth.