CURRENT EXHIBTIONS

ABOUT THE WORK

ABOUT THE ARTIST

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CONTACT

 SUSAN CUTTS arbs
PAPER SCULPTURE

GALLERY

'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 Shoes'

FASHION

 
 

'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 7th May – 22nd 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

'DRESSED TO KILL'
2006

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'T ROSES'
2008

'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 19th century, 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 19th 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 21st 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 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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'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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On the catwalk at Hanji Fashion Parade

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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.

Am an Associate of the Royal Society of British Sculptors and a member of the Society of Designer Craftsmen as well as IAPMA and UK based Paperweight.  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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CURRENT & RECENT EXHIBITIONS

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

CHILE ‘Paper Runway’ Santiago - March 2010

USA ‘Paper Runway’ Concourse T, Atlanta-Hartsfield Airport, Atlanta January – December 2009

LONDON  18@108 'Sculptors on Sculpture' Royal Society of British Sculptors
Old Brompton Road - September/October 2009

TASMANIA  ‘New Paper Old Land’ Burnie Regional Art Gallery
March – May 2009

TASMANIA '1:100,000 Mapping the Island' The IXL Atrium, Hobart
March – April 2009

CANTERBURY– Canterbury Festival, Blackfriars - October 2008

DORSET – PULP FICTION touring Dorset - October/November 2008

POLAND -  BLOWING IN THE WIND , Museum Paper, Dusznikach Zdroju,  - July/September 2008

FINLAND  SHOES WITHIN ART, Tikanoja Art Museum, Vaasa -
June/September 2008

SCOTLAND HOW DO I LOOK IN THIS? Park Gallery,Falkirk - June/July 2008

SOUTH KOREA JEONJU PAPER FESTIVAL, Jeonju - May 2008

USA MIRROR OF THE 21ST CENTURY, Beca Gallery, New Orleans -
April/May 2008

WESTBOURNE  FAIRY TALE, The Art House, West Sussex - April 2008

WHITSTABLE PAPERVIEW, Horsebridge Arts Centre, Kent - February 2008 

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EXHIBITIONS
International
Permanent Display
Selected UK
Solo
Touring

Awards
Books
Catalogues
Collections & Commissions
Critical Review
Training
Associated Work Experience
Links

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INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITIONS

2010
2010
2009
2009
2008
2008
2005
2005
2001
2001
2001
2000
2000
1998
1998
1998
1996
1996		 'The Future in Paper' La Vigan Gard, France  7th - 22nd May 2010
‘Paper Runway’ Santiago, Chile - March 2010
‘New Paper Old Land’ Burnie Regional Art Gallery, Tasmania
'1:100,000 Mapping the Island'  The IXL Atrium, Hobart, Tasmania
National Museum of Fine Arts, Santiago, Chile
THE PAPER RUNWAY, Atlanta USA
Hanji Fashion Parade, South Korea
'WEARABLE UNWEARABLE', National Gallery, Kilkenny, Ireland
'PAPER ART', Museum for Paper, Basle, Switzerland
UNEXPECTED, Sotheby’s New York, USA
GALERIE MARISKA DIRKX, Holland
TEXTILFEST, Carnuntum Austria
PAPIER, Groningen, Holland
HOLLAND PAPER BIENNALE, Rijswijk Museum, Hague
Textil Mail Art, Barcelona, Spain
INTERNATIONAL TEXTILEFEST, Austria
PAPER Mino Washi Museum, Mino City, Japan
ART TO WEAR, Brisbane, Australia

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Chichester District Council ‘Year of the Artist’ Commission –
IMPRINTS at Westgate Sports Centre, Chichester
STILETTO' 100 stiletto shoes in the
Hove Museum Art Gallery, South East Arts Craft Collection

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SELECTED UK EXHIBITIONS

2009
2009
2009
2009
2009
2008
2007
2007
2006
2006
2006
2005
2005
2005
2005
2005
2005
2005
2005
2004
2004
2003
2003
2003
2002
2001
2001
2001
2001
2001
2000
2000
2000
1999
1999
1999
1999
1999
1998
1998
1997
1997
1997
1997
1996
1996
1995
1995
1995
1995
1995
1995
1994
1994
1994
1994
1993
1992
1991
1991
1988

 18@108 'Sculptors on Sculpture' Royal Society of British Sculptors
Canterbury Festival, Blackfriars
'Pulp Fiction' - Touring Dorset
'How do i look in this?' Park Gallery, Falkirk
'Fairy Tale' The ArtHouse, Westbourne
'Paperview' Horsebridge Arts Centre Whitstable
'Sweet Dreams' Walford Mill, Wimborne, Dorset'Courage ‘07' St Matthews Church, Worthing
'One Year On' Otter Gallery, Chichester
'Journeys' the Art of Making, West Dean Gallery
'Paperworks' Bury Museum
'And Then' Bedales Gallery, Petersfield
'Little Footprints' Ariel Centre, Totnes
'Art in the Park' Chichester
'Inside Annual' RBS, RBS Gallery, London
Victoria Fearn Gallery, Cardiff
'Letting Silence Speak'  Guildhall, Chichester
'Ashes of Roses' Aberystwyth Arts Centre
'Pulp Fantasy' 20-21 Visual Arts, Scunthorpe
'Paperwork' Rufford Craft Centre, Rufford, Notts
'domestic (f)utility' New Art Centre, Salisbury
MATERIAL SPACES Tullie House Gallery, Carlisle
Artinheaven, Church of Sacred Heart, Brighton Fringe
Artlounge, Lytham St Anns
‘You are here’ Pheonix Gallery, Brighton
‘Swans’ Oriel maker, Cardiff
‘Paperworks’ Bury Art Gallery
‘On Paper’ Craft Council, London
‘Images’ Worthing Museum
‘Contemporary Interiors' Beatrice Royal Gallery, Eastleigh
‘Summer Exhibition’ Beatrice Royal Gallery, Eastleigh
‘New Artists’ Albany Gallery, Cardiff
‘Love in 21st Century’, Oriel Maker, Cardiff
‘Only Paper’ Stroud House Gallery
‘London Fashion Week’ Chalk, London
‘Fashion Event’ White Gallery, Hove
‘Disembodied’ City Gallery, Worcester
‘Clothe’ Stroud House Gallery
‘Branching Out’ Westbury Museum, Fareham
Craft Collection, Hove Museum
‘Reflections’ Hastings Museum
‘Beyond the Quilt’ Maidstone Museum
‘Behind the Beach Hut’ De La Ware Pavillion, Bexhill
‘Inspirit’ Maidstone Musem
‘Hayvend’ ICA & Whitechapel Galleries,London
‘Paper Art’ Up Paper Inc, Kemsley, Kent
‘Winter Wrapping’ Blackfriars Art Centre
‘Abrasion– Vision Fest’ Atkinson Gallery, Southport
‘Burning Bright’ Fire & Iron Gallery, Surrey
‘Life's a Beach’ City Art Gallery, Leicester
‘Make it Paper’ Shipley Art Gallery, Gateshead
‘Portable Art Box’ - Issue 2  Storey Institute, Lancaster
Pam Schomberg Gallery. Colchester
‘Contemporary Fashion’ Drumcroon Wigan
Oxford Gallery
‘Igneous’ The Orangery, London
‘On Paper‘ Lancaster City Museum
‘Procretator‘ Pullit Gallery, London
‘Mixed Paper‘, Marilyn Garrow Gallery, London
Diploma Show, London College Furniture
Diploma Show, London College Furniture

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2004
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
2000
1999
1993		 RED SHOES, Fleur De Lis Gallery, Faversham, Kent
ASHES OF ROSES & LULLABY, Rugby Museum & Art Gallery
ASHES OF ROSES, Maidstone County Halll Gallery 
ASHES OF ROSES, Mid Pennine Gallery, Burnley
A DRESS A DRESS, Mission Gallery, Swansea
LITTLE LITTLE BLACK DRESS, Artsactive, Havant
A DRESS A DRESS, Otter Gallery, Chichester
PASSIONATE LIVES Woodlands Gallery, Greenwich
WORD PLAY, Wyllyotts Potters Bar

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2009
2002/3

2002/3

2001/4


2001/2

1999

1995/6

 'Pulp Fiction' - Touring Dorset
ENTER HERE > a Crafts4Now touring exhibition - Cirencester, Frome, Wimbourne, Bovey-Tracey and Dumfries.
SHOE a Leicester City Gallery touring exhibition - Leicester, Dundee, Mansfield, Falkirk, London and Lincoln.
PRINCESS SU SU a Gracefield Arts touring exhibition - Dumfries, Bexley, Worcester, Halifax, Aberdeen, Berwick-on-Tweed, Falkirk, Rugby, Salford, Isle-of-Skye, Leicester, Kilkaldy and Hove.
PAPER PAPER a Sassoon Gallery touring exhibition - Folkstone and Maidstone.
NOT WHAT IT SEAMS a Hampshire Museum Services touring exhibition - Alton, Eastleigh and Havant.
PAPIER ART FASHION an International Handpapermakers touring exhibition - Munich, Karlsruhe and Hamburg, Germany.

1991 Marlow Award

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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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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 & COMMISSIONS


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

Private Collections: UK, Europe, Australia and America

COMMISSIONS
 Horsebridge Arts Centre, 2008
Park House Gallery, Falkirk, 2008
Whistles (Fashion Group) 2006
Faversham Society 2004
Brewery Arts Centre 2002
Gracefields Arts Centre, Dumfries 2001
Sotherby’s New York, USA 2001
Chichester District Countil 2000
University of Sussex Fellowship Exhibition 1997

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2004
2001
2001
2001		 The Guardian - March 27th
Craft Magazine Nov/Dec
The Independent - August
Art Review - October

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LONDON COLLEGE OF FASHION 1996                    Theatrical Corsetry
LONDON COLLEGE OF FURNITURE 1987-1991      Constructed Textiles

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WORKSHOPS - numerous including TATE MODERN 2004 & West Dean 2005/06
Organiser - Open Doors (studio art trail)  2001/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9
Community projects, Banners 2000, Folded Canvas 2001
Curated and toured – Box Exhibition, Intrinsic Book Exhibition

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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.nyartsmagazine.com
www.baph.org.uk
www.horsebridge-centre.org.uk

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