A Cut Above The Rest

It takes more than a steady hand to create the delicate and intricate artwork that Parth Kothekar does with such skill

- Parth Kothekar

Tell us about your formative years in design.

PK: I was born and raised in Ahmedabad. After school I wanted to pursue design and joined Maya Academy of Advanced Cinematics for a Diploma in Animation. However, they stressed only on 3D animation studies while it was 2D art forms that interested me. During this time, I filled up my sketchbooks with drawings. I decided to quit the animation institute and began sketching full time.

How were you drawn to paper cutting?

PK: It all started with an experiment four years ago. I was looking for ways to showcase my art on a big scale and started practicing graffiti. I began to experiment with stencils, and was introduced to paper cutting. One day I pictured the stencils to be inverted I followed the idea and was fascinated by my own work. Initially, paper cutting was a hobby; once I had enough artworks on hand I displayed 84 paper cuts at an exhibition in Kanoria Center of Arts in Ahmedabad.

What does it take to learn the art of paper cutting?