It all started by accident. It was a rainy day in 2012 when Isobelle Ouzman found a cardboard box full of water-damaged hardback novels on the street. Like any good bookworm, she decided to take the books home to dry them out and repair some of the bindings. But instead of reading them, she began to draw on one of the book’s first page, and before she knew it, within a few months she had finished carving it. This experiment was the beginning of a prominent career as an artist of 3D illustrated books, with scenes that seem to come direct from fairy tales.
A passion for books and stories
Born in Leeds (UK), Ouzman relocated with her family to the United STates as a teenager. There she graduated from the Tacoma School of the Arts (Washington), where she studied illustration, painting and photography. At 18 she started work full-time, first in the screen printing industry – influenced by her father and grandfather’s trade – then later as a waitress.
Throughout this period she never stopped creating art in her spare time until, in 2020, she decided to drop everything to dedicate herself full to her “Altered Books”, as she calls them. For the artist, now based in Bratizlava (Slovenia), restoring meaning to damaged or abandoned books is the culmination of her passion for reading and interest in stories.
Escapism through nature
When opened, Ouzman’s creations reveal densely-layered labyrinths of forests and meadows, often inhabited by creatures such as deer, hares, owls or a lone wolf, illuminated by moonlight or an interplay of day and night. According to the artist herself, her work chiefly explores escapism through nature, as well as folklore and fairy tales, which teach us fantastic lessons about resilience, adversity and emotional strength.
Her motivation comes from her experiences and emotions as a teenager when, after moving to the United States, her shyness prevented her from making friends easily. Books were her refuge, especially tales of enchanted forests and creatures. For Ouzman, these works are a reminder that life, however difficult it may be, is a gift.
Meticulous work process
The works of this paper artist are the result of meticulous work combining illustration and paper cutting. To achieve this, she uses hardback books, diaries and sketchpads that are either structurally damaged or mass produced and of little value, gathered from both donations and thrift stores. For the artist, it is another way to generate conversation about the reuse of materials in consumer society.
When visualising a new project, she first considers aspects such as size, type of paper, texture and even the style of binding – in other words, these are creations that require a certain degree of flexibility.
Once she finds the canvas that inspires her, the artist spends days gluing the pages together in layers and leaves them to dry for at least one week. Then she begins work on the interior, drawing her own fantasy world and cutting out parts of the pages to create a sense of depth. For this she uses tools such as spatulas, blades, binding glues, watercolours, ink and coloured pencils.
The process usually takes anywhere from a few weeks to months on end. It may even happen that the book falls apart completely half way through, or the pages are impossible to sculpt. But it is precisely this slow, meditative work which Ouzman believes boosts her creativity and mental well-being. She now also teaches others how to bring paper to life.
Sources:
Website: https://isobelleouzman.com/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfCOyXjcGo0sflOrp2Qf4hQ
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/isobelle.ouzman