You have a blank sheet of paper in front of you. What do you do with it? While most people would write on it or fold it into some form of origami, artist Peter Callesen creates amazing sculptures and cut-outs from his paper.

Born in Denmark, Peter Callesen studied at Goldsmith’s College in London. His work explores the relationship between two and three dimensions and is incredibly imaginative. He seems to use the theme of fairytales as many of his work deals with dreams and the impossible. He explores the lost land of childhood, centering between dreams and reality.

Peter says this about his choice of paper: “I find the A4 sheet of paper interesting to work with, because it is probably the most common and consumed media and format for carrying information today, and in that sense it is something very loaded. This means that we rarely notice the actual materiality of the A4 paper. By removing all the information and starting from scratch using the blank white 80gsm A4 paper as a base for my creations, I feel that I have found a material which we all are able to relate to, and at the same time is non-loaded and neutral and therefore easier to fill with different meanings. The thin white paper also gives the paper sculptures a fragility which underlines the tragic and romantic theme of the works.”

I love the detail in his artwork. Some of these cut-outs just pop out at you and others make you wonder ‘Wow, how did he do that?’



This kind of work makes me wonder one thing though: How many papercuts do you think he gets from his art?



Copyrighted images used with permission. Many thanks to Peter Callesen!

If you enjoyed these paper cut-outs, check out Paper Cut Clouds: 6 Truly Magical Cloud Lamps.