Handcrafted Radiant Paper Art: Gateways to Imaginative Realms Formed by Reminiscences

The radiant paper sculptures created by the artistic partners Hari Panicker and Deepti Nair (also known as Hari & Deepti) are a sight to behold. The light flows through the carefully hand-cut designs, casting shadows that seem as deliberate as the pieces themselves. However, if you take a moment longer, you’ll recognize that these artworks go beyond mere visual fascination; they represent contemplations on memory, migration, and the often unnoticed significance of the mundane.

Their newest collection, All That Glitters Is Gold, unfolds as an array of luminous, layered realms where paper serves as both a canvas and a component. Light breathes life into every tableau from within, exposing layers through translucency instead of bulk. The outcome is a sculptural vernacular that appears fragile but is profoundly cinematic.

The title materialized unexpectedly during the couple’s travels. While in a quaint market in Mexico, a brief interaction with a vendor offering an antique locket resulted in a translated phrase that would eventually anchor the entire exhibition. “The title for our show, All That Glitters Is Gold, came to us by chance,” they share. “In that moment, it felt like a gentle affirmation. It reframed everything surrounding us.”

Instead of merely suggesting superficial beauty, the phrase adopted a profound significance, deeply rooted in lived realities. “In a fast-paced world where few pause to notice the nuanced, the phrase reminded us that human experiences, emotions, and shared legacies are precious,” they express. “Everything born from life—our rituals, our journeys, our sorrow, our happiness—is golden.”

This perspective is woven throughout their work. Being children of immigrants and immigrants themselves, Hari and Deepti engage with their craft as both active participants and observant witnesses to their surroundings. Their sculptures do not seek closure; rather, they exist as an ongoing journey. It embodies a continuous endeavor to reflect, reconnect, and recall. Light symbolizes awareness, shining on what might otherwise remain unseen.

Paper, their main medium, is pivotal in this inquiry. Often regarded as fragile or transient, it transforms in their hands into a medium capable of carrying emotional and cultural significance. “Paper is merciless in its simplicity,” they reveal. “It serves as both surface and framework. It demands attention and can be shaped, carved, sculpted, and sliced.”

Light acts not just as an enhancement but as an essential partner. The interplay between these two materials enables the sculptures to transform based on perspective, time, and distance, emphasizing that meaning itself is ever-changing.

Narratively, the artworks strike a balance between intimacy and vastness. Each scene begins in sketchbooks, through writing and drawing, before organically taking shape during the cutting phase. Some designs emerge spontaneously, while others only materialize when paper meets blade. Their sources of inspiration range from folklore, cinema, music, and travel, yet the work has gradually become more self-reflective. “It has turned inwards,” they articulate, “an endeavor to encapsulate who we are, where we originate from, and what we experience.”

In All That Glitters Is Gold, light does more than showcase form. It evolves into a conduit for empathy, memory, and attentiveness. Through the quiet strength of paper and the transient shimmer of light, Hari and Deepti invite viewers to slow down, to observe, and to rethink where true value lies. In this way, they remind us that what shines the brightest is often what we are most likely to miss.

To view more and keep up with the artistic duo, you can follow Hari & Deepti on Instagram.

Hari & Deepti produce visually stunning illuminated paper sculptures.

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