3D Drawing with Paper: Texture – Surface – Structure
The teenagers in AccessArt’s Experimental Drawing Class have been working with paper to create animated figures. To continue their investigation into the material, Sheila invited me to lead a workshop on paper sculpture, which I divided into two sessions.
In the first session, the challenge was to create 3D forms from sheets of paper experimenting with structure and texture using manipulation techniques. Thread could be used as a flexible 3D line for decoration and also as a way of holding things together. (No glue or staples allowed!). The colour palette for the project was kept deliberately neutral to allow attention to be focused on texture and form. The sculptures were then photographed without any indication of scale, exploring different viewpoints and contrasts of light and shadow to highlight the surface qualities. These images formed the starting point for the second session.
To access all content, I would like to join as…
An Individual
An Organisation...
AccessArt is a UK Charity and we believe everyone has the right to be creative. AccessArt provides inspiration to help us all reach our creative potential.
See This Resource Used In Schools...
You May Also Like
Visual Arts Planning Collections: Cardboard and paper
Adapting AccessArt: 2D to 3D
Making Prompt cards
Sheila, AccessArt
November 17, 2015 @ 12:56 pm
Thank you Andrea for posting such a valuable resource and leading such a remarkable session. The teenagers clearly got so much out of it (as did I!). Surely one could spend a life time exploring the potential of manipulating paper to create form. Outstanding! Thank you.
Andrea Butler
November 18, 2015 @ 5:24 pm
Thanks Sheila, for such positive feedback. I really enjoyed the session and thought the teenagers created fabulous work – paper is a fascinating material to explore and experiment with!
irene p
May 7, 2025 @ 2:52 pm
love this session. I wonder how I could adapt it for 5 to 7 years old kids at my after-school club, not only in matter of tools but also how they’d understand abstract concepts and experimenting with shapes. I can guess few will get it straight away but few others might need a bit more direction.
Rachel
May 12, 2025 @ 10:52 am
Hi Irene, a few adaptations may be necessary for younger children, but they can still have a lot of fun and great learning experiences with this activity. You could spend a bit more time on the 3D work, and perhaps have some colourful papers available. Prepare some examples beforehand, as shown in the photos, and see if they can replicate a couple before inventing their own. Then, with the drawing, you could offer some warmup activities to ease them into the observational work. We have some great ice breaker activities on the site you might like to look at: https://www.accessart.org.uk/warm-exercises/