Cut Paper Drawings

Submitted by: Ned Fox
Grade Level: 7th - 12th

Description:

Instead of drawing with your pencil, you are going to make a drawing by cutting shapes out of white paper and gluing them on another piece of white paper. No pencil lines or shading on this project.

Show samples of paper artists to the students (You can see samples in the book on the bottom of this page). Paper artists such as Jeff Nishinaka and Lisa Rodden are a good place to start. Have the students do a rough drawing first, of what they want to do (this will be a guide for them).

Have the students cut shapes out of white Drawing Paper, and start to White Glue them on another sheet of white paper. (this is where I show them some of the shapes they glued on are to flat and need to bent out on an edge so they cast a shadow (like a relief).

Tiger Mask, Self Promotion Paper sculpture by Jeff Nishinaka.

Tell the students they can make shapes stick out from the surface which they are gluing on by cutting slits in the paper and from the back, they can insert other shapes that are already cut out into the glued on paper. They can also curl the paper by putting their finger on one side of the paper and the edge of the scissors on the other side of the paper. While applying pressure, pull the paper out between the finger and scissors.

These projects turned out better than I had expected. The students wanted to do another that had the color in them and pencil lines, so we did those also.

HINT: I let the kids draw shapes out and then cut them out, all they had to do is turn the shapes over on the back, so no pencil lines showed and glue the pencil side down.

HINT: If there is inside lines that the student drew on the shape have them cut those lines also, remember not to cut to the edge, or the shape is cut in ½.

Book

500 Paper Objects: New Directions in Paper Art - This 500 series reveals the creative work of today's most gifted and original artists and the limitless potential of the craft. Juried by Gene McHugh, an award-winning arts writer and well-established expert in the field, the book presents a broad range of techniques, forms, and aesthetic approaches, with magnificent examples of origami, kirigami, cutting, quilling, papier-mâché, and casting.