SUSAN CUTTS Arbs PAPER SCULPTURE

SUSAN CUTTS
Member of the Royal Society of Sculptors
PAPER SCULPTURE

'Let's Dance'
(2023)

'Gone Viral'
'Virus'
'Cherish'
'Who knows where
the time goes'
'Sur la pointe'
'Decolletage'
'Selkie'
'End-Paper'
'Floribunda'
'Pin-Up Button-up Tie-Up '
'Fairy Tale'
'Hour Glass'
'Dressed to Kill'
'T Rose'
'Footsteps Past and Present'
'Nursery Rhyme'
'Lullaby'
'Ashes of Roses'
'Little Black Dress'
'Stiletto'
'Reveal Conceal Create'
''Red & Black Stilettos'
'Red Shoes'
'After Degas'

BOOKS
'Folded Secrets'

'GONE VIRAL'
2020

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'VIRUS'
2020

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'CHERISH'
2011

detail

'cherish fans'

One of a series of 5 dresses to be exhibited at the Tudor House Museum, Southampton from 3^rd March 2012 – October 2012.

Each ‘dress’ has a 2metre drop of tulle sprayed with gampi pulp. The bodice is gampi paper. Within the folds of the dress hang miniature hats and gloves, also made from gampi.

The inspiration for Cherish is taken from the history of the Tudor House Museum and Hampshire.

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'WHO KNOWS WHERE THE TIME GOES'
2012

Side View

Paper is said to have a memory, the creases, wrinkles and folds hold words unspoken or forgotten. In 'who knows where the time goes' the absence of the dancer gives the paper the power to evoke physical and emotional memories.

Exhibiting in 'The First Cut' exhibition Manchester Art Gallery and Sea City Museum Southampton.

Rear View

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'SUR LA POINTE'
2012

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'DECOLLETAGE'
2011

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'SELKIE'
2010

The opportunity to create work for Bexhill Museum as part of the Coastal Currents Festival inspired me to place ‘Selkie’, a myth based work, within the context of the museum using traditional display techniques.

Selkie is a series of miniature handmade paper dress and shoe sculptures.

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'END-PAPER'
2010

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'FLORIBUNDA'
2010

Floribunda is as ephemeral as blossom.

When the petals fade I will plant the dress in warm Spring soil.

The seeds captured within its creases and folds will germinate.

Summer will bring flowers and nectar for bees.

Autumn is for harvesting the seeds and fibres.

In Winter I will use them to make more paper

Completing the circle of creation and growth.

I used assorted seeds and fibres from my own garden to make the paper for Floribunda which included artichoke, assorted grasses, cordyline, honeysuckle flowers and seed heads from poppies, pansies, cornflowers…..

This work was made specifically for ‘THE FUTURE OF PAPER’ Exhibition at La Condamine Chapel and Hotel de la Condamine, Le Vigan, Gard, France.
From 7^th May – 22^nd May 2010.

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'PIN-UP TIE-UP BUTTON-UP'
2009


Pin-Up	Button-Up	Tie-Up

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'FAIRY TALE'
2006

Fairy Tales as we know them are safe, respectable and moral.

In the original versions they looked unflinchingly at the darker side of people’s lives, particularly that of women, the poor and the disenfranchised.

If life is a ‘fairy tale’ the paper dresses reflect the fragility of the ‘happy ending’

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'HOUR GLASS'
2008

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'DRESSED TO KILL'
2006

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'T ROSES'
2008

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'FOOTSTEPS PAST AND PRESENT'
2008

Great Britain is no longer a country with an economy based on manufacture but the legacy of the past, which transformed the landscape from pastoral to industrial, remains with us. Previous generations who had worked the land flocked to the newly built cities to work in factories and mills.

I chose a shoe, typical of those worn by small children who worked in the northern mill towns of the 19^thcentury, to represent the industrial landscape of Britain. The circle denotes the constant flow of people throughout this country which has, and continues, to shape this land.

TECHNICAL DATA
I made the paper for the shoes from denim shoddy, and recycled linen, cotton and silk. The shoes are made without the use of glue, stitching or armatures. The size and style of the shoes are true to the clogs worn by very small children in the northern mill towns of the 19^th century.

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'NURSERY RHYME'
2005

RING A RING O’ ROSES
5 PIECES each consisting of one bodice and 100+ roses at base.
Each approx height 5’ width at base 3’diameter
Materials: Own handmade paper from abaca fibre and recycled paper.
Sponsored by: Khadi Papers and Seawhite of Brighton.

Ring a ring o’ roses
A pocket full of posies,
A tishoo! A-tishoo!
We all fall down

It is commonly assumed that ‘ring a ring o’ roses’, dates back to the Great Plague when a rosy rash was the symptom of the plague, posies of herbs carried as protection and sneezing a final fatal symptom. However, there is no written record of this nursery rhyme before 1881. A myth dispelled perhaps but interestingly in 1949 the following was recorded.

Ring a ring o’ geranium
A pocket full of uranium
Hiro Shima, Hiro Shima
All fall down

‘Ring a ring o’ roses’ is a simple nursery rhyme which instantly rises to the lips of small children whenever they join hands in a circle – I hope this piece reminds us of children in the 21^st century who’s lives are still cut short by disease and war.

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'LULLABY'
2004
Twenty-one panels displayed as a triptych

Inspired by 'ashes of roses' in 'lullaby', I try to capture the everyday ephemerna of life - the smile, the kiss, the frown, the tear. As in a lullaby I have used a simple language and melody.

LULLABY (1)
Golden slumbers kiss your eyes:
Smiles awake you when you rise.
Sleep pretty wantons, do not cry,
And I will sing a lullaby:
Rock them, rock them, lullaby.
extract 'Lullaby' Thomas Dekker 1570 -1641

LULLABY (2)
Hush-a-bye, baby, on the tree top,
When the wind blows the cradle will rock;
When the bough breaks the cradle will fall,
Down will come baby, cradle, and all.
Attributed to a Pilgrim from the Mayflower and said to be the first poem written on American soil.

Each lullaby is:
One panel 60cm x 60cm Four panels 30cm x 30cm
Sixteen panels 15cm x 15cm Displayed as triptychs

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'ASHES OF ROSES'
2002

		280 boxes, each containing two pairs of shoes and twenty-three roses. 'ashes of roses' was inspired by the 1727-1747 church records of St. Mary's Church, Chichester. Through the records I was able to follow the lives of the parishioners, revealing happy and sad events, events now forgotten - other people's memories. With 'ashes of roses' I wanted to release long forgotten events from the pages of our lives, by using images as familiar now as then, inspiring remembrance and reminiscence. The shoes represent the past and the future, with the intertwined laces acting as a link. The rose is used to celebrate and commiserate; to reflect and to remember. At first sight all the boxes look the same, but on closer inspection each pair of shoes and each rose is different - like our memories. The lid is taken off the box, footsteps are retraced and memories unfold like the petals of a rose.

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'LITTLE BLACK DRESS'
1999

Ten life-size black dresses

The little black dress transforms the wearer and the wearer transforms it.

'little black dress' is a tribute to this stoic item of clothing.

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'STILETTO'
250 boxes each containing one pair of paper shoes
1996 - 2000

The language of clothing, contemporary and historical, intrigues me. The empty dress or shoe is a familiar image which, when repeated, emphasizes the dialogue each piece suggests. Our feet shape the shoe – by the way we walk the way we stand – making it as individual as a thumbprint and like a thumbprint it can expose and betray.

In Stiletto I was seduced by the shape of the shoe, the height of the heel, the curve of the arch. Some shoes are never worn, others worn only on special occasions and there are those worn until they fall apart. These shoes tell the story of our lives – the dance danced the dream dreamt.

To make them in paper is an indulgence – they will never be worn, they are as fragile as the hopes, dreams, secrets and memories they evoke.

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'REVEAL CONCEAL CREATE'
Triptych of dresses in varying degrees of form
2001

The dress is armour against the elements, but more importantly it protects from public gaze and assumption.

By conforming to expectations through dress we protect the secrets of our true self.

'reveal conceal create' presents the promise of exposure but self is no longer there.

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'RED & BLACK STILETTOS'
2010

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'RED SHOES'
Commissioned by the Faversham Society 2004.

Commissioned by the Faversham Society to commemorate Faversham's shoemaking history and the Saint Crispin legend. The starting point for the work was a pair of shoes belonging to Pope John Paul II, given to the Vigevano Museum - Saints Crispin and Crispinian Consortium, Italy. These red shoes inspired me to research other 'red shoes' with a history. Hans Christian Andersen's 'The Red Shoes' had Karen the orphan aspiring to transcend her status and, of course, the 1948 film starring Moira Shearer portrays the 'Red Shoes' as the story of a contemporary ballerina. In the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, Glinda's magic wand moves the shiny red shoes from the Wicked Witch of the East to Dorothy's feet, who then skips along the Yellow Brick Road to Oz. Karen sacrificed her feet, Moira Shearer's character sacrificed love, the Wicked Witch of the East is sacrificed for the red shoes. The papal connection is the Eucharist commemorating Christ's sacrifice and, of course, the Saint Crispin legend is all about sacrifice and shoes. A tenuous link maybe and the 'red shoe' as an icon, maybe not, but shoes symbolise historical changes across time and across cultures and will continue to do so for as long as we have feet and a need to use them.

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'FOLDED SECRETS'
2011

Needlewomen the world over have devised different ways of storing threads, patterns and needlework tools. The Miao and Dong minority groups living in Southwest China make an ingenious type of paper booklet to store their tools. The booklets are made from handmade paper with as many as nineteen compartments. The women use these booklets to organise their thread, braids and paper patterns. Often family photographs are inside making them especially personal.

The books are usually referred to as Dragon Booklets but I came across a reference to them as ‘Folded Secrets’ I like to think that this refers to the booklets holding the secret of skills and patterns passed from mother to daughter, keeping alive centuries of tradition.

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'AFTER DEGAS'
2008

‘After Degas’ corset and skirt

Hanji Fashion Parade 2008, South Korea.

The ‘stitched’ corset made from own ‘gampi’ paper, coated with kakishbu – traditionally used to dye/strengthen/waterproof paper – giving the appearance and feel of leather.

Skirt made from own ‘gampi’ paper, four layers.

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ABOUT THE WORK

The language of clothing – contemporary and historical – intrigues me. I choose through my work to explore the relevance of dress to identity and the interaction between wearer and observer. The work investigates how the orchestration and multiplicity of form makes the individual components lose their original identity – suggesting an alternative image.

‘We shape the clothes we wear, making them as individual as a thumbprint and like a thumbprint they can expose and betray’.

I use my own handmade paper working from the raw fibre using traditional European equipment and techniques. The process of papermaking is vitally important to my work. The complex structure of the fibres enables me to create sculptural pieces without the use of glue, stitching or armatures. I use the image of ‘dress’ frequently in my work, its perception both historical and contemporary intrigue me.

In 2008 and 2009 I made wearable ‘stitched’ paper pieces for the Hanji Fashion Parade, South Korea.

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ABOUT THE ARTIST

Studied Constructed Textiles at the London College of Furniture Parts I & II City & Guilds. Studied Theatrical Corsetry London College of Fashion, College Diploma.

I am a member of the Royal Society of British Sculptors and a member of the Society of Designer Craftsmen as well as IAPMA. Have been exhibiting nationally and internationally since 1991 in solo, group and touring exhibitions including Sotheby’s New York Gallery (USA) Roche Court Sculpture Park (UK) and the Holland Paper Biennale. Work in various Public Collections as well as private collections. My work has appeared in numerous books, catalogues, magazine and websites.

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RECENT EXHIBITIONS

JAPAN
Sept-Dec 2021
IAPMA 'PAPER TOYOTA' Exhibition
'Toyota City Folk Crafts Museum
& Obara Paper Art Museum'

CHINA 'Feasts on Paper'
10^th September - 10^th November 2019
2019 Shanghai International Paper Art Biennale
Fengxian Museum Shanghai
333 Hupan Road
Fengxian District Shanghai, China

UK 'Bedales Gallery 25'
19th January - 7th February 2015
The Gallery, Bedales Arts, Petersfield, Hampshire

GERMANY 'Paper and Plant'
17th September - 20th December 2013
Wandelhall des Bonatzbaus, University Tubingen, Germany

UK 'The First Cut'
27th September 2013 - 5th January 2014
Sea City Museum, Southampton, England

PORTUGAL
20th July - 30th August 2013
Instituto de Design, Guimaraes, Portugal

SPAIN 'SUAVE 5'
30th May - 30th June 2013
Museum National Des Artes Decoratives, Madrid, Spain

UK 'The First Cut'
5th October 2012 - 27th January 2013
Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester, England

USA 'In the Hot Seat'
12th - 27th October 2012
Proximity LLC, Cleveland, Ohio, USA

UK 'The First Cut'
20th April 2013 - 9th June 2013
Djanogly Art Gallery, Nottingham, England

UK 'The First Cut'
27th September 2013 - 5th January 2014
Sea City Museum, Southampton, England

UK 'Cherish' Solo Exhibition
3rd March - 5th October 2012
Tudor House Museum, Southampton, England

FRANCE 'Footsteps'
4th - 25th May 2012
Musee Cevennole Le Vigan

AUSTRALIA 'Silver' - 25 years of IAPMA (International Association of Paper Makers and Artists)
19th October - 6th November 2011
69 Smith Street, Fitzroy, 3065
www.69smithstreet.com.au

USA 'Leaf & Bound' International Book & Paper Art Exhibition
1st - 30th October 2011
Burgess Hall Art Gallery, Eureka College, Eureka

UK Under & Over
14th May - 19th June 2011
Walford Mill, Wimbourne, Dorset, BH21 1NL

UK First Anniversary 'Paper' Exhibition
5th May - 31st July 2011
Unit 12, Tixall Heath Farm, Tixall, Stafford, ST18 0XX

UK Arts & Crafts Legacy III Exhibition
20th March - 1st May 2011
Millinery Works, Southgate Road, London N1 3JS

UK ‘Paperworks' Bury Art Gallery & Museum, Moss Street, Bury, Lancashire
31st July - 6th November 2010

USA ‘Paper Runway’ Houston Centre for Contemporary Craft, Houston
5th June - 4th September 2010

UK 'Coastal Currents' Bexhill Museum, Bexhill on Sea, East Sussex
From 28th August 2010

FRANCE 'The Future in Paper' La Vigan Gard
7th - 22nd May 2010

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EXHIBITIONS
International Recent
Other

Books
Catalogues
Collections
Links

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INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITIONS (Recent)

2010
2010
2009
2009
2008
2008
2008
2008
2008
2008

‘Paper Runway’ Santiago, Chile
'The Future in Paper' La Vigan Gard, France May 2010
‘New Paper Old Land’ Burnie Regional Art Gallery, Tasmania
'1:100,000 Mapping the Island' The IXL Atrium, Hobart, Tasmania
'Blowing in the Wind' Museum Paper, Dusznikach Zdroju, Poland
'Shoes within Art' Tikanoja Art Museum, Vaasa, Finland
JEONJU PAPER FESTIVAL, Jeonju, South Korea
'Mirror of the 21st Century' Beca Gallery, New Orleans, USA
'Paper Runway' Atlanta USA
HANJI FASHION PARADE, South Korea

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OTHER SELECTED EXHIBITIONS

2009
Canterbury Festival, Blackfriars
18@108 'Sculptors on Sculpture' Royal Society of British Sculptors
Old Brompton Road, London
PULP FICTION touring Dorset
BLOWING IN THE WIND , Museum Paper, Dusznikach Zdroju, Poland
SHOES WITHIN ART, Tikanoja Art Museum, Vaasa, Finland
HOW DO I LOOK IN THIS? Park Gallery, Falkirk Scotland
‘New Paper Old Land’ Burnie Regional Art Gallery, New Zealand
'1:100,000 Mapping the Island' The IXL Atrium, Hobart, Tasmania
MIRROR OF THE 21^ST CENTURY, Beca Gallery, New Orleans, USA
FAIRY TALE, The Art House, West Sussex
PAPERVIEW, Horsebridge Arts Centre, Whitstable, Kent

2008
JEONJU PAPER FESTIVAL, Jeonju, Korea

2007
Paperworks, Bury Museum
Courage ‘07 St Matthews Church, Worthing
Sweet Dreams, Walford Mill, Wimborne, Dorset

2006
And Then, Bedales Gallery, Petersfield
Journeys, the Art of Making, West Dean Gallery
One Year On, Otter Gallery, Chichester

2005
Ashes of Roses, Aberystwyth Arts Centre
Pulp Fantasy, 20-21 Visual Arts, Scunthorpe
Victoria Fearn, Cardiff
Art in the Park, Chichester
Inside Annual, Royal Soc British Sculptors, London
Little Footprints, Ariel Centre, Totnes
'WEARABLE UNWEARABLE', National Gallery, Kilkenny, Ireland

2004
Domestic(f)utility New Art Sculpture Park, Roche Court
Paperwork, Rufford Centre, Rufford

2003
Artlounge, Lytham St Anns
Artinheaven, Church of Sacred Heart, Brighton Fringe, Brighton
MATERIAL SPACES Tullie House Gallery, Carlisle

2002
‘You are here’ Pheonix Gallery, Brighton

2001
‘Contemporary Interiors’, Beatrice Royal , Eastleigh
‘Images’, Worthing Museum
‘On Paper’ Craft Council, London
‘Paperworks’ Bury Art Gallery
‘Swans’, Oriel maker, Cardiff
'PAPER ART', Museum for Paper, Basle, Switzerland
UNEXPECTED, Sotheby’s New York, USA
GALERIE MARISKA DIRKX, Holland

2000
‘Love in 21st Century’, Oriel Maker, Cardiff
‘New Artists’ Albany Gallery, Cardiff
‘Summer Exhibition’ Beatrice Royal Gallery, Eastleigh
TEXTILFEST, Carnuntum Austria
PAPIER, Groningen, Holland

1999
‘Clothe’,Stroud House Gallery
‘Disembodied’ City Gallery, Worcester
‘Fashion Event’ White Gallery, Hove
‘London Fashion Week’, Chalk, London
‘Only Paper’. Stroud House Gallery

1998
Craft Collection, Hove Museum
‘Branching Out’ Westbury Museum, Fareham
HOLLAND PAPER BIENNALE, Rijswijk Museum, Hague
Textil Mail Art, Barcelona, Spain
INTERNATIONAL TEXTILEFEST, Austria

1997
‘Behind the Beach Hut’ De La Ware Pavillion, Bexhill
‘Beyond the Quilt’, Maidstone Museum
‘Reflections’, Hastings Museum

1996
‘Paper Art’ Up Paper Inc, Kemsley, Kent
Hayvend’ ICA & Whitechapel Galleries, London‘
Inspirit’ Maidstone Musem
PAPER Mino Washi Museum, Mino City, Japan
ART TO WEAR, Brisbane, Australia

1995
‘Portable Art Box’ - Issue 2
Storey Institute, Lancaster
‘Make it Paper’ Shipley Art Gallery, Gateshead
‘Lifes a Beach’, City Art Gallery, Leicester
‘Burning Bright’, Fire & Iron Gallery, Surrey
‘Abrasion– Vision Fest’ Atkinson Gallery, Southport
‘Winter Wrapping’ Blackfriars Art Centre

1994
‘Igneous’ The Orangery, London
Oxford Gallery
‘Contemporary Fashion’ Drumcroon Wigan
Pam Schomberg Gallery. Colchester

1993
‘On Paper‘, Lancaster City Museum

1992
‘Procretator‘, Pullit Gallery, London

1991
Diploma Show, London College Furniture
‘Mixed Paper‘, Marilyn Garrow Gallery, London

1988
Diploma Show, London College Furniture

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BOOKS

2007
2006
2003
2002
2002
1999
1999
1997
1997
1994

A history from Sandals to Sneakers (Scarpe Italian edition) pub. 2007
A history of Sandals from Sneakers by G. Riello & P. McNeil pub. 2006
Textile Perspectives in Mixed Media Sculpture, Jac Scott pub. 2003
Papermaking & Bookbinding, Epp & Reiner
Monografias ‘Body' Architectural Assoc. Galicia Spain
Fibrearts Design Book
Papermaking, by Couzins Scott
Scheufelen Calender – Gold Medal Stuggart, Germany
The Craft of Handmade Paper, by John Plowman
Papermaking, by Marion Elliot

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CATALOGUES

1996
1997
1998
2000
2000
2001
2001
2002
2005

Papier-Art-Fashion – Badishes Landesmuseum
Behind The Beach Hut – Sussex University
South East Arts Craft Collection – Hove Museum
Paper Papier, by Cas Holmes
Paper and Water, by Peter Gentenaar
On Paper, a Craft Council publication
Princess SuSu – Dumfries & Galloway
Shoe – Leicester City Gallery
Wearable/Unwearable - Craft Council Ireland

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COLLECTIONS

PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
ROBERT C WILLIAMS MUSEUM, ATLANTA, USA. 2008
ABERDEEN MUSEUM & GALLERY, SCOTLAND, 2005
WIGAN ART IN EDUCATION COLLECTION
SOUTH EAST ARTS CRAFT COLLECTION

Private Collections: UK, Europe, Australia and America

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LINKS
www.axisweb.org
www.handpapermaking.org
www.paperweight.org.uk
www.iapma.info
www.rbs.org.uk
www.societyofdesignercraftsmen.org.uk
www.baph.org.uk
www.zoneonearts.com.au/susan-cutts/

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