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Artist Carefully Cuts Paper into Detailed Layers Playing with Light and Space

La pietra e la piuma 3-Dimensional Paper Box by Elisa Mearelli

In her most recent series, La pietra e la piuma, Italian artist Elisa Mearelli presents a collection of three-dimensional paper art that beautifully plays with light and space. Composed of layered, delicately cut paper, each paper box puts a sculptural spin on conventional cut paper art.

The creations that comprise La pietra e la piuma range from abstract, experimental designs to more figurative scenes of nature. Using multiple sheets of paper, the artist is able to fabricate a sense of perspective by creating compositions that appear to recede into the distance and “sink into a dream.” Additionally, many of her pieces are monochromatic (the artist especially favors a plain, white aesthetic) or subtly embellished with pops of blended color. Such a minimal palette allows external light sources to enhance each piece. “My latest works can interact with the light around them,” Mearelli tells us in an email. “The shadow and the light areas inside them will change during the day as it changes the sunlight that seeps inside.”

Unlike many artists who use paper merely as a canvas, Mearelli believes that “the paper is not just a support to cover with color, but rather the true protagonist of the work of art.” In addition to her focus on paper as subject matter, Mearelli believes that the permanence of practice is what sets it apart from others. “My studies focalize on the necessity of leaving an indelible mark on the paper by means of strong invasive action such as making holes and cuts in it,” Mearelli explains. “None of my works can be erased or covered over with color. The paper has been cut, there is no going back; it has its own form, it tells its own story, like the human skin.”

See every delicate paper box that comprises the La pietra e la piuma series by Elisa Mearelli below.

La Pietra La Piuma 3-Dimensional Paper Art by Elisa Mearelli

La Pietra La Piuma 3-Dimensional Paper Art by Elisa Mearelli

3D Paper Art Box Detail by Elisa Mearelli

La Pietra La Piuma 3-Dimensional Paper Art by Elisa Mearelli

La Pietra La Piuma 3-Dimensional Paper Art by Elisa Mearelli

La Pietra La Piuma 3-Dimensional Paper Art by Elisa Mearelli

3D Paper Art Box by Elisa Mearelli

3D Paper Art Box by Elisa Mearelli

3D Paper Art Box by Elisa Mearelli

3D Paper Art Box by Elisa Mearelli

 

La Pietra La Piuma 3-Dimensional Paper Art by Elisa Mearelli

La Pietra La Piuma 3-Dimensional Paper Art by Elisa Mearelli

3D Paper Art Box by Elisa Mearelli

Elisa Mearelli: Website | Facebook | Instagram | YouTubeVimeo 

My Modern Met granted permission to use photos by Elisa Mearelli.

Kelly Richman-Abdou

Kelly Richman-Abdou is a Contributing Writer at My Modern Met. An art historian living in Paris, Kelly was born and raised in San Francisco and holds a BA in Art History from the University of San Francisco and an MA in Art and Museum Studies from Georgetown University. When she’s not writing, you can find Kelly wandering around Paris, whether she’s leading a tour (as a guide, she has been interviewed by BBC World News America and France 24) or simply taking a stroll with her husband and two tiny daughters.
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