Charmed Life Papercuts

Here are the finished papercuts inspired by the lyrics of Charmed Life.  The cliffs were much more complex and took three times as long to do -- I managed to get the wave done in a day.  They're mounted on tiny 4mm card-making dots to make them float above the grey paper, some of the dots needed to be cut into three with a scalpel, that was the most fiddly part, I'd say.
I was going to mount them on black, as my project's been so much about black and white work, but the contrast was so stark that I felt it drowned out (ho ho) some of the finer detail.  This grey paper gives a more subtle effect.  In keeping with the nautical theme, the backing paper is called 'dreadnought grey'.

 

I cut the flowers as thin slits like the slats of the boat, but underneath the glass frame they just disappeared.  I cut out some tiny petals and leaves from printer paper and glued them on (lots of tweezer work), which I think looks pretty and draws attention to them a bit more.

They certainly look restful in their white frames, even though they're tempestuous images.  I hope they go down well at the exhibition! 

Charmed Life Papercuts - Process Shots

Rapidly making two papercuts out of A3 sketch paper, so I can have new examples of papercutting in the exhibition. They're based on a verse from The Divine Comedy's 'Charmed Life', and they're also inspired by two C19th artworks by Hokusai and Monet.

Hokusai - Great Wave Off Kanagawa

Monet - Cliffs at Etretat

Well sometimes this life is like being afloat

On a raging sea in a little row boat

Just trying not to be washed overboard

But if you take your chances and you ride your luck

And you never, never, never, never, never give up

Well those waves will see you safely to a friendly shore.

Kite-Flying Cutout

This took ages and is very delicate!  It's not my design, it's based on a little jpeg I found online (I'll add the link later) of a Chinese paper cutout.  I thought it would be best to practice by copying an existing design before trying to make up my own -- and I learned a lot about the integrity of paper and how a cutout design holds together.

Cutting Out

This is all I've been looking at, all day long. My eyes hate me!

Dancers Cutout

Been making cutouts again.  These are based on an illustration by Arthur Rackham, but I've adapted them quite a bit.  Using black textured paper to get a neater cut than with cardboard -- and experimenting with coloured tracing paper.

Home Cutout

More cutting out.

Forest Cutout

Been experimenting with my new craft knife.