Maude White, “You Were Wild Here,” July 24 – September 4, 2015

Exhibition Catalog, Maude White, You Were Wild Here

Maude White is a visual storyteller who uses a craft knife to intricately cut paper figures and scenes by hand. Her work recalls the ancient paper-cutting tradition of China that originated as part of worshipping ancestors and gods. Rather than drawing or writing on the paper, she allows the paper to stand alone, removing that which is not essential to her vision. Every cut is exact and meaningful, resulting from a nearly meditative concentration and commitment.

Her work captures the delicate tension between individuals and nature through her masterful use of scale and design, relying on only the contrast of positive versus negative space and light versus shadow to reveal her forms. Each piece draws one into White’s fantastical world. “By respecting and honoring paper for what it is, and not considering it a stepping-stone to something greater, I feel like I am communicating some of the pleasure it brings to me. I am not creating for art’s sake, I am creating for paper’s sake, to make visible the stories that every piece of paper attempts to communicate to us.”

Maude White is a paper-cutting artist living in the Hudson Valley. She has exhibited in galleries in Western New York and the Hudson Valley and is expanding into more installation-based and site-specific paper-cutting work. Her work has been featured at Colossal, Trouve Magazine, Block Club magazine, and blog, and will be appearing in the upcoming The Happy Film by Stefan Sagmeister. Her portfolio is available at bravebirdpaperart.com.