articles: Like a blank sheet of paper ...
The magic world of Peter Callesenand and his paper sculptures
Lorenzo Paci (translated by Savina Carluccio)
Impenetrable Castle, 2005
Acid free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Peter Callesen (born 1967) is a Danish artist and author known for his talent in combining the minimalism of a single A4 sheet with the complexity of origami meticulously cut and folded, using the obvious contrast between the two and at the same time tying strong images and incisive lightness and fragility of a blank sheet of paper.
Callesen can create true works of art with arguably one of the most common materials. He tells stories in the balance between reality and fantasy, whether it be a bouquet of flowers that seem to break away from their three-dimensional negative, that of a hummingbird flying away from the blank page, almost if it were leaving behind its own shadow abandoned on the paper.
He claims to prefer the paper because, never mind the web, it is still today the world's most popular medium for the exchange of information, but we hardly stop thinking about the physical thing and the real essence of what passes daily before our eyes.
Starting from scratch using a blank A4 page (from 80 to 115gsm) as the basis for his creations, he has found a material with which we are all able to relate to, and all the same neutral and therefore easier to fill with different meanings.
His striking works are a delicate balance between aesthetics and concept. The papercuts are the shadows of the works’ own being, first of all objects, then freed from the author's imagination.
The positive and negative space is used to tell a story, sometimes forgetful of the past of the subject represented, and sometimes as presage of what the future holds ... all of this using only one sheet of white paper.
There is a tragic vision in most of his works, whether it's a dying flower, an angel trapped in a cage or a small apple core, as well as the fragile and delicate paper which would appear to emphasize an imminent element of disaster.
A kind of salvation, without any chance to escape.
The Short Distance Between Time and Shadow, 2006
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
All in All, 2006
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
All in All, detail
Angel, 2006
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
Big wave moving towards a small castle made of sand, 2005
Acid free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Angel, detail
Boat II, 2010
Acid free A4 120 gsm paper and glue
Boat II, detail
Bridge Over Troubled Water, 2005
Acid-free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Butterflies Trying to Escape Their Shadow, 2005
Acid-free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Closet, 2006
Acid free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Closet, detail
Cradle, 2006
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
Cradle, detail
Distant Wish, 2006
Acid-free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
Distant Wish, detail
Do Not Enter, 2006
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
Down the River, 2005
Acid free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Down the River, detail
Eismeer, 2006
Acid free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Eismeer, detail
Fall, 2005
Acid-free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Fall, detail
Half Way Through, 2006
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper, pencil, and glue
Hunting, 2005
Acid-free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Impenetrable Castle, 2005
Acid free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
In the Beginning (Snake inside an egg), 2005
Acid free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
In the Shadow of an Orchid, 2005
Acid free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
In the Shadow of an Orchid, detail
Little Erected Ruin, 2007
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
Little Erected Ruin, detail
Looking back, 2006
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
Man Made of Woman, 2005
Acid-free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Man Made of Woman, detail
Mountain II, 2005
Acid free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Mountain II, detail
On The Other Side, 2006
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
On The Other Side, detail
Pandora´s Box, 2005
Acid free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Pandora´s Box, detail
Resurrection, 2008
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
Resurrection, detail
Running Fire II, 2010
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
Single Double Bed, 2005
Acid-free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Snowballs, 2005
Acid free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Snowballs, detail
The End of the Road, 2010
Acid free A4 120 gsm paper and glue
The Impossible Meeting, 2005
Acid-free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
The Impossible Meeting, detail
The Painter, 2010
115 gsm acid free A4 paper, glue
The Short Distance Between Time and Shadow, 2006
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
The Dying Swan II, 2010
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
Traces in Snow, 2005
Acid-free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
Traces in Snow, detail
Walking Snail, 2006
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
Wedding Dress Without Bride, 2005
Acid free A4 80 gsm paper and glue
White Hand, 2007
Acid free A4 115 gsm paper and glue
features and benefits Peter Callesen - http://www.petercallesen.com/
Lorenzo Paci (translated by Savina Carluccio) - February 29, 2012
[This article originally appeared in Italian: Come un foglio di carta bianco...]
comments
amazing paper arts!
subtle, delicate and beautiful!
Very beautiful!