WHITE BLACK OUT

How many times did you stare at the blank sheet of paper, waiting for inspiration? How many times did you experience the ‘white out’ in front of its sucking void, totally unable to express yourself? Writers, cartoonists, composers, graphic designers, architects and illustrators: all of creative production starts from a white piece of paper. Simon Schubert, a German artist based in Cologne, ends up with it, as well! And that’s because his work concentrates on the magic possibilities offered by the folded sheet. No pencil or brushes. His craftmanship focus on paper as it is, with a process closer to sculpture than origami: Simon carves the paper in skillful, misplacing lines, raising the medium to three dimensional dignity. The effect defies all of our preconceived ideas about surface and depth, and if you watch at Simon’s work for too long, you almost risk to be swallowed into a white ‘black hole”. The German artist works mostly on 50×70 cm. sheets, but he’s comfortable working with smaller as well as bigger sizes too. Simon doesn’t tell us more. His hard-conquered technique remains a secret. In a fast-forward culture where everybody can find tutorials on YouTube virtually on any subject or discipline, from cat-bathing to guitar foot-playing, Simon’s jealous protection of his misterious tools is, somehow, reassuring.

Monica Turlot (Brandpowder)