About
Fall Semester, August 2024
Paper cut on watercolor paper
For this project we used paper-cut designs to understand “notan,” a Japanese concept employing the balance of light and dark elements to create an appealing design. Notan emphasizes the importance of negative space. I wanted to create a design that felt magical. Hair is one of my favorite things to work with, it’s very flexible design-wise and contains a lot of lovely, organic shapes.
I planned the first piece digitally on my iPad using Procreate before sketching it onto paper and cutting out the design. It required a lot of precision and careful placement, but it was a welcome challenge. I was inspired by the “reflection” of cut pieces notan uses to create a finished design, and it made me think about mirrors and identity. How much of ourselves can our reflections capture? Are we defined by our presence or the negative space around us? Notan would argue that both are equally important.
