Fold, Paper, Scissors Exhibition Highlights Everyday Material Transformed into Visually Stunning Artworks

Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum presents Fold, Paper, Scissors, an exhibition showcasing works that range from complex and precisely cut paper "drawings," to mathematically mind-boggling folds, to works created from a single sheet of paper. The artists in this exhibition push the boundaries of this sparse material far beyond the limits of its everyday purpose.

The "paper folders" tend to be analytical, fascinated by the connections their artworks have to mathematics and engineering. While the "folders" turn two-dimensional paper into three-dimensional objects, the "paper cutters" use scissors or blades in a reductive process to remove areas creating expressive, often very detailed, works from a material that is often taken for granted, used then discarded during the course of our daily lives.

Paper cutting's origins date back as early as 4th Century China and many cultures across Asia, Europe, and North America have used paper cutting in a variety of techniques as a form of art, decoration or as a part of celebration and ceremony. Contemporary artists have only recently begun exploring paper as an expressive medium.

Artists in the exhibition include Jaq Belcher, Lucrezia Bieler, Charles Clary, Beatrice Coron, Martin Demaine, Erik Demaine, Reni Gower, Bovey Lee, Tahiti Pehrson, Teresa Redden, Matthew Shlian, Jane South, Noriko Takamiya and Annie Vought.

Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum is located on the Mesa Arts Center campus at One East Main Street in downtown Mesa. Admission is free, and visiting hours are Tuesday throughSaturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. with extended hours on Thursday until 8 p.m., and Sunday noon to 5 p.m. Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum front desk: 480-644-6567.