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Paper-craft Inspiration: Amazing Art from Zim and Zou

After reading articles about artists who create amazingly detailed paper-craft art pieces, I found myself going back to the articles about Zim and Zou. An amazing pair of artists that work by hand to create colourful and interesting designs, for clients of all sorts. The installation of theirs I am choosing to focus on blew me away due to it's whimsical beauty. I was also amazed to find out their client was a high-end clothing and accessory store in Dubai.

It's crazy to imagine this was in a mall window:





The little villages represented in these installations are a fantastical and whimsical place. It has the essence of a fairy village, and the childishness of a Spongebob episode. (I totally love the pineapple house). Though it has the child-like effect it also effectively communicates the needs of their client which was to further communicate the precision and refined beauty that they feel represents their store. At first it seems a bit weird to use a tiny paper village to represent a company that refers to their objects "as functional and vital," but, along with the precision the sculpture feels inviting, and also probably got lots of people looking towards their store. I see this as an interesting relationship between client and designer, since even though they consider themselves designers they give themselves room for expression as well, and companies that want to noticed for being unique really appreciating that.


The detail and time that went into coming up with this idea are also something I marvel at. Each house seems to by itself be an engaging and focused sculpture, then they did it over and over again. Giving each detail that amount of attention results in a sculpture that could be looked at for hours. Another thing that makes this installation pop is the colour palette. It, like the sculpture in it's entirety seems to at once communicate both the whimsy of the small village, but also a sophistication in its complementary colour scheme.

The artists, Zim and Zou, are also very connected with nature and use environmentally friendly paper and use each scrap of cut paper to add more details. Their connection with nature is also shown in the message they want to show with their art. That nature is really in control, and should be respected. designboom.com quotes Zim and Zou about their ideas behind the sculpture, ‘this microscopic point of view — where plants and other vegetation reign as masters — is like a kind of picture, a flash, a precise instant in nature’s unrestrained run, life is everywhere, flowers are growing and carry away its inhabitants in their impetus. the mysterious people are evolving, building, and living right in the heart of the nature, revealing a fragment of their daily life.’  This message would also been something that the client would have appreciated because they also have messages of sustainability in their brand, that they would want to communicate to the public, as more and more people look for that in their clothing.

This work inspires me because it finds a way to balance a beautiful and intricate design, with an important message, all while meeting the needs of their client. The sculpture is really incredible to look at because care went into every part of it and it brings a bit of fantasy and wonder into the boring land of a mall. All of their sculptures utilize amazing colour palettes, and intricate details. I love of all of their work on Instagram (@zimandzou) and am inspired that though what began as personal art turned into something in high demand by their clients.

Link for photo credits:
https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2017/01/colorful-paper-village-installations-for-hermes-by-zim-zou/
Link for quote:
https://www.designboom.com/art/zim-and-zou-hermes-store-dubai-forest-folks-paper-art-01-18-2017/

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