Peter Callesen






















“…Thin white paper gives the (paper) sculptures a frailty that underlines the tragic and romantic theme of my works.” – Peter Callesen

Looking Back presents a skeleton sitting in a low chair, engaged in thought. Appearing to look across the negative space of its own shadow, the small sculpture offers (literally) a much lighter version of Rodin’s The Thinker. The work of Danish artist Peter Callesen dangles between the second and third dimension, challenging viewers to contemplate the vague paths of each subject’s destiny. In this suspended state, it becomes difficult to distinguish the direction in which these constructed events flow. Reflecting ideas of self-destruction and rebirth, this momentum conceives a cycle of thoughts, which pulsate within his lively creations. Holding On to Myself portrays a figure attempting to save the other by pulling it back within the boundaries of the white space. A different interpretation leads one to believe that the figure outside of the frame is trying to free its counterpart. From castles to hummingbirds to scattered flowers, memories of childhood and fragments of dreams are encouraged to coexist in one atmosphere. The connection between reality and Callesen’s representation of it is not as frail as the material he uses. Each sculpture is erected from a single sheet of paper, ranging from the standard A4 size and beyond.

Callesen’s technique is exceptional and very refined. I admire his strong sense of representation, along with his complete awareness of materials. His work Transcendence features a gunshot on white paper against a periwinkle background with feathers occupying the bottom of the frame. The strength of the title allows much more to the imagination beyond the visual information given, which is something I hope to achieve. What I find just as interesting is his creation of this reversible perspective that comes along with the procedure of working from cutouts. My work in Concepts last semester dealt with finding a balance between two activities that shared an inverse relationship for fulfillment. I would like to find more ways of representing this suspended state; the center between two reflections of perception.

http://www.petercallesen.com/index/index2.html

http://www.designboom.com/weblog/cat/10/view/5120/paper-art-by-peter-callesen.html

http://www.petercallesen.com









Comments

Popular Posts