Paper Bas-Reliefs by Paper Sculptor Lauren Collin

It’s incredible to see how the paper bas-reliefs by paper sculptor Lauren Collin (27 years) contain the finesse and refinement of Japanese precision. Despite her admiration for “origamiques”, referring to the minimalist Japanese culture, there is nothing Japanese about this French Paris-based artist.

After her art studies and after earning a diploma in interior architecture at the Penninghen in 2011, Collin started working for design firm Gilles & Boissier. Here she discovered her love for paper in the art of model-making for her interior architectural projects, which were always executed in white.

After three years at the design firm, Collin decided to become a full time artist and paper became her major mode of expression. “I wanted an evolution to design on paper in volumes” she says. Under the influence of her graphic designer mother (creativity) and dental surgeon father (precision), she began to cut paper forms with one of her father’s scalpels, achieving precise and flowing circular movements.

Lauren Collin does not make use of preparatory sketches. Her inspiration comes from photos or images of nature and plants, but the various surfaces and the roughness of the grain of paper can also determine the way she works. While Collin is on the lookout for simplicity, refinement and harmony, according to her the emphasis is on the effect that light has on her sculpted paper. It’s the light that provides a notion of movement, resembling a mix of transparency and shadow. That’s why Collin mostly works in the mornings, sitting next to the window experimenting with the play of light on her beautiful bas-reliefs.

A big thanks to Jean-Jacques Dutko’s gallery, which is showing all Paper Bas-Reliefs by Paper Sculptor Lauren Collin, in her first solo exhibition until May 16th on Rue Bonaparte, Paris. If you’re in the area – it’s a definite must see!