5Th
October 2012 – 27th January 2013
FREE
Entry
Two
weekends ago, (I know, I should have posted this before now! I will get better,
I promise…) we spent the weekend in Manchester, during which we visited
Manchester Art Gallery to see this frankly stunning exhibition (see photos
below). Unfortunately it’s only on until this Sunday, but there’s still time,
and it’s definitely worth the trip:
“31
international artists who cut, sculpt and manipulate paper, transform this
humble material into fantastical works of art for our stunning new exhibition.
Wonder
at giant sculptures inspired by far away galaxies that spiral from the wall,
explore a walk-through forest of paper trees and marvel at miniature worlds
that explode from vintage staple boxes or emerge from the page of a book.
If
what you’ve heard so far isn’t enough to get you re-arranging your plans, then
here are some photographs of just a few of my favourite pieces, to wet your appetite:
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| Wuthering Heights, 2010. Su Blackwell Photograph originally uploaded by Abby Swanwick |
These
photographs really don’t do Su Blackwell’s work justice (this book was encased
behind glass – hence the reflections). The images on her website are much
better (definitely worth a visit), but nothing beats seeing these works with
your own eyes. The detail is incredible. Just look at the fern behind the roses
(below).
 | |
| Rose from Sonnets, 2012. Su Blackwell Photograph originally uploaded by Abby Swanwick |
 | |
| Anderson M Studio Photograph originally uploaded by Abby Swanwick |
This has to be my
favourite piece of the entire exhibition, (and trust me, that was difficult to
say when you see the standard of work on display). It doesn’t look much from
the photograph, (and I know what you can see is incredible), but when you view
the outstanding stop-motion animation that Anderson M Studio have created,
using these paper-cuts amongst many more, you’ll be blown away. See more of
Anderson M Studio’s animations on their website.
 | |
| Mountain II, 2005. Peter Callesen Photograph originally uploaded by Abby Swanwick |
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| Sarah Bridgland Photograph originally uploaded by Abby Swanwick |
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| Noriko Ambo Photograph originally uploaded by Abby Swanwick |
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| The Wonder Forest Manabu Hangai Photograph courtesy of Manabu Hangai |
Finally, it’s worth mentioning one additional artist, Nicola Dale, whose work was also featured at ‘The First Cut’, but for which I am attempting to source photographs:
Another
pleasing feature of this exhibition, was that work such as Nicola's,
remained accessible within the centre of the room, as opposed to being encased
in glass, (though they’d have had a job). ‘Sequel’, is an actual tree branch
from which paper oak leaves, cut from various coloured, printed material are
attached. It encapsulates the true beauty of nature and symbolises the paper’s
connection with its origin.
I’m afraid I didn’t have time to attend this side of the exhibition, (gutted!) but if above is anything to go by, I don’t know about you, but I recon it’s certain to be a goodun!
Now
I'm not sure if I’m right in thinking this, but to me, it looks Manchester
might be just one leg of a tour that ‘The First Cut’ exhibition is taking.
Therefore if you didn’t get the chance to visit Manchester Art Gallery or the
Gallery of Costume, check these dates out:
Djanogly Art Gallery, Nottingham, 20 April - 9 June 2013
Southampton SeaCity Museum, 11 October 2013 - 12 January 2014
