Folding paper art is nothing new, as is evident by the Japanese art of Origami. However, Simon Schubert, a contemporary artist, has a different take on folding paper art that has much to do with architecture. It isn’t surprising his works have become so popular.
This 45-year-old artist basically uses the play of light and shadow on figures that he creates out of completely blank sheets by wetting and folding them. His expertise lies in handling the delicate wet paper without tearing or spoiling it in any way. It’s his sheer genius that makes him handle paper the way he does to create his amazing sculptures, such as hanging lamps, intricate stairs, remarkable interiors of majestic buildings, and many more.
Schubert induces an almost ghostly effect on flawless white paper by meticulously creasing a single sheet of paper into images of a variety of architectural spaces. Even the minutest of details are highlighted in his artworks. His creations include the coffered ceilings, ballrooms, stately staircases, mirrored corridors, doorways, and much else.
Schubert was always interested in art since his childhood. So, it wasn’t surprising that he pursued art as a career. He enrolled in the Arts Academy of Düsseldorf, Germany. After graduating, he took up folding paper art, since paper fascinated him. He spent two years perfecting the techniques of this form of art. Says he on boredpanda.com, “The first attempt was not really so successful. It took quite a while to perfect the technique.”
His mixed-media sculptures are inspired by surrealism, Samuel Beckett and Edgar Allan Poe. Take for example one of his works that depicts a woman completely engulfed by her own hair in a coffin-like bathtub, or his mixed media installation ‘Le EL’, in which a man is looking into a mirror and the mirror casts an unsettling reflection of his back, instead of the face.
Currently based in Cologne, Germany, also his birthplace, Schubert’s works are highly prized and have found their way in West Collection, Oaks, and PA, and his mixed-media sculptural works are part of Saatchi Collection in London, UK. He is a recipient of the ZVAB Phoenix Art Award.
Simon Schubert
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