Papercraft is the fourth book from Gestalten documenting the growing trend of hand crafted creations. Following on from Hidden Track , Tactile and Tangible, Papercraft focuses on paper as a means of creation and expression of ideas through this common medium.
Highlighting the importance of paper historically, Papercraft begins by discussing how paper once symbolised a means of democratisation in distribution information. With the advent of digital technology over the last 30 years offering the copy & paste culture of infinite permutations, a framework was born to rebel against this in the form of the DIY hand-crafted creations that Papercraft showcases. Split into five sections the book covers work from publications and posters to 3D objects such as paper toys and installations, through to fashion and costume as well as typography and environments showing the diversity of these paper creations.
At first glance, I couldn’t help feeling I’d seen a good chunk of the work before—not surprising considering the coverage many of these practitioners have received for their work in the press and numerous publications over the past 12 months. After a more thorough read and despite the familiarity I was sucked in by the labour of love that is evident in this work.
Using such a fragile material intrinsic with ‘hands-on’ work it’s clear the process and to some extent suffering that has gone into the pieces shown is as equally important as the end result – suggesting why this niche craft is so intriguing (Hina Aoyama’s work being a stunning example).
The book is well put together with the usual high quality design and production value expected from Gestalten. The book’s designer Birg Meyer has detailed the content sympathetically, using a flexible grid that offers a variety of images big enough to really illustrate the work displayed. Complemented by a simple layout this allows the intensely detailed work to speak for itself. The inclusion of DVD content is also a nice surprise. A collection of animation work featured in the book alongside printable nets of some paper toys help bring life to boring studio desks and are a cheerful addition.
Papercraft fails through a sporadic lack of organisation. Peppered throughout are small profiles about the work of the designers which run alongside the captioning. These give some insight into the material but are a little under used and could have more potential. In a publication where the ‘art of making’ equals the ‘end product’ these curated sections could offer a behind the scenes look at the process that goes into the piece on show. Videos of some installations would also give a real appreciation of the factors influencing the work.
Overall Papercraft does what it says—showcases a diverse collection of work created using paper, more concentrated than its predecessors allowing it to hold its own. The content of the book is extremely niche which might not suit everyone. If you enjoyed Tactile et al, you’re likely to enjoy this fourth edition. The DVD makes the title a little more out of the ordinary for a book of this price. A good reference point and one you are bound to find inspiring. So much can be created from the same pulpy based material leaving you with a feeling of awe for the higher state of focus leading these designers to produce such stunning work. It will be interesting to see if this is the last book we see on pseudo 3D rephotographed type work or is there still plenty of mileage in this niche genre?
Papercraft is available from Amazon and all good local book stores now.
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Words: Gil Cocker
Photography: A huge thanks to Liam & Dominique Shaw for helping us out with the photography this time round. For all you Malcolm Menzies groupies, he’ll be back soon helping us out with the photography.
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