Nahoko Kojima’s Monumental Yet Poetic Paper Sculptures
The artist reinvents ‘kirigami’, the art of cutting paper, in her colossal pieces that give off a captivating sense of fragility.

Courtesy of solokojima.com
Known for her many sculptures of flowers and animals, Nahoko Kojima, born in 1981, is reinventing kirigami, the art of cutting paper. Using techniques that are unique to her, she transforms washi (a type of artisanal Japanese paper) into an impressive polar bear that’s three metres tall, or a 32-metre-long whale.
This life-size whale, unveiled at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre in September 2018, catches the gaze particularly due to Kojima’s attention to detail: the whole surface is covered with complex patterns that demonstrate Nahoko Kojima’s dexterity. The immense sculpture made from cut paper therefore appears, in spite of its size, to float just above the ground.
Nahoko Kojima’s work can be viewed on her website.

Courtesy of solokojima.com

Courtesy of solokojima.com

Courtesy of solokojima.com

Courtesy of solokojima.com

Courtesy of solokojima.com
TRENDING
-
Paris, Tokyo: Robert Compagnon
With his co-chef and talented wife, Jessica Yang, Robert Compagnon opened one of the top new restaurants in Paris: Le Rigmarole.
3:31 -
‘It’s a sincere pleasure when the objects I make are recognised as part of the Mingei circle’
The brass cutlery meticulously shaped by Ruka Kikuchi in his Setouchi studio has earned admirers across Japan and beyond.
-
Always Shooting, Never Shot: Motohiro Hayakawa’s Fantasy Battlegrounds
In these colourful and cluttered paintings, mysterious landscapes teem with aliens, monsters, and the occasional human.
-
Inside the Heart of Japanese Fine Watchmaking, A Visit to the Grand Seiko Manufacture
These refined pieces are made in a Kengo Kuma–designed building, set in a natural environment that inspired their signature dial motifs.
-
The Tattoos that Marked the Criminals of the Edo Period
Traditional tattoos were strong signifiers; murderers had head tattoos, while theft might result in an arm tattoo.



