Sculptor Chris Gilmour doesn’t rely on expensive, heavy materials for his work. Rather, his realistic sculptures require cardboard and glue, making his artwork both unique as it is sustainable.
“One of the reasons I am attracted by cardboard is that, although it can be an expensive material, people fail to notice it and just throw it away when buying an object, often slightly irritated at the thought of having to dispose of it,” explains Gilmour on his personal website.
“There is a widespread idea of having to leave our mark, of expressing our personality by buying this or that object that will best convey our originality. Almost as if the consumer society had transformed even our personalities into something you can buy.”
Not one to shy from a good challenge, Gilmour explored the many ways in which cardboard can be used as a basis to his artwork, tying his work with his ethical philosophy and educational projects. “Cardboard is cheap and easy to find, and using simple tools and techniques it is possible to make almost anything,” he states.
With no added supporting structure of either wood or metal, the finished sculptures challenge our ideas about cardboard, most often thought of as light, weak, and uninspiring materials, meant to be used and thrown away. As such, his work can also be understood as a critique of our consumeristic nature and as a metaphor for transience and impermanence.
Whatever the case is, the result is pretty remarkable.
