Unfolding: The Paper Art and Science of Matthew Shlian

Description

A complete retrospective of the paper engineer and artist Matthew Shlian, documenting a decade of unrivalled and unexpected creativity. Paper engineer and artist Matthew Shlian has always recognized the material's potential for experimentation. Folded, tessellated, compressed, extrapolated, two-dimensional paper becomes three-dimensional sculpture in beautiful and unexpected ways. 'My process is extremely varied from piece to piece. Often I start without a clear goal in mind, working within a series of limitations. For example on one piece I'll only use curved folds, or make my lines this length or that angle, etc. Other times I begin with an idea for movement and try to achieve that shape or form somehow.' Unfolding is Shlian's first comprehensive monograph. A journey into the new possibilities of folding technology, the intricate complexities of Islamic patterns, and the sheer potential offered by a sheet of white paper, it celebrates a humble material, on the edge of its existence, elevated to timeless form and possibility.

Matthew Shlian is an artist, paper engineer and founder of the Initiative Artist Studio in Ann Arbor, Michigan. His work extends from drawings to large-scale installations to collaborations with leading researchers and scientists. His work for the National Science Foundation explores paper-folding structures on the macro level translated to the nano-scale. His client list includes Apple, P&G, Facebook, Levi's, Sesame Street and the Queen of Jordan.

'Intriguing' - Aesthetica