Chris Natrop

Chris Natrop, Pink Orbvilivion, size variable, 2004
Five pieces of hand cut paper, coloured ink, watercolour, irredescent medium, thread, lead weights, painted wall,cast shadows

A shadow was thought by some cultures to be similar to that of a ghost, a flicker of a life unable to end for some reason. In many works of modern fantasy, shadows are often intertwined with dark arts and black magic. - Donna Akrey, course syllabus Project 3, ARTX 280

After a chat about the Paper Alchemy blog, Montreal based artist Donna Akrey (www.mobiusstripmall.blogspot.com) sent me a link to works by Chris Natrop (www.chrisnatrop.com). Donna has been researching artists works related to "shadows" for a studio course she teaches at Concordia University. The intricate paper cut-out works by Chris Natrop, often sprawling through entire rooms, cast exquisite shadows of flat architecture and flat plant life- a paper world that calls into question our perceptions of space.


Chris Natrop, White Mayday in Mustard and Gold, site-specific installation- Raid Projects, Los Angeles, CA, 2006
Watercolor and white tape on cut white paper with thread and nylon netting, 24 x 16x 12 feet

The Lenox 100 paper that Chris Natrop uses in his work has the 100% rag fibre content of fine art and printmaking papers. Natrop takes a utility knife to rolls of Lenox 100 to create his free-hand, negative space drawings. For Natrop, paper as a medium acts as restraint, control or partner in his cut-out sprees; providing an apt structure for his drawings' crystalline logic of bubble- orbs, butterflies, hanging gardens, drips, spiders and ants.