Artist Blake Conroy uses laser cutting technology to create highly complex, patterned 3D paper sculptures. See more of his fascinating work by visiting his website.
![“Sunspot, Orang Tang” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3” by artist Blake Conroy. See his portfolio by visiting www.ArtsyShark.com](https://www.artsyshark.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/10-Sunspot-Orang-Tang.jpg)
“Sunspot, Orange Tang” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3”
The core of my work is made up of large pieces that address my concerns about the environment. I want to express this concern in an elegant way to reach as large an audience as possible.
![“Field Study, Bikini Atoll” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3” by artist Blake Conroy. See his portfolio by visiting www.ArtsyShark.com](https://www.artsyshark.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Field-Study-Bikini-Atoll-copy.jpg)
“Field Study, Bikini Atoll” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3”
I believe if you bludgeon people over the head repeatedly they will not listen. There are a lot of people with big sticks; I want to try a subtler approach. I look for the beauty around us. It could be gone if we don’t pay attention to it. It is not just beauty, it is our world.
![“Definition of Monoculture” Detail by artist Blake Conroy. See his portfolio by visiting www.ArtsyShark.com](https://www.artsyshark.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/1-Definition-of-Monoculture-detail.jpg)
“Definition of Monoculture” Detail
My piece “Definition of Monoculture” is a panoramic view of a cornfield. I printed/etched the definition of monoculture from the dictionary under the cut out. I dropped out/cut out the letters M O N S A N T O to say, “Do we really want a single company owning the rights to the seeds we depend on? Do we want them playing with them genetically so they are tied to their herbicide products?”
![“Field Study, Background Radiation” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3”](https://www.artsyshark.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Conroy-image.png)
“Field Study, Background Radiation” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3”
My practice is to draw and redraw. When I draw, the images have to hold together as images and they have to hold together as a page.
![“Field Study, Ode to Jackson Pollack” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3” by artist Blake Conroy. See his portfolio by visiting www.ArtsyShark.com](https://www.artsyshark.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Field-Study-Ode-to-Jackson-Pollock-copy.jpg)
“Field Study, Ode to Jackson Pollack” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3”
Because I am cutting through the picture plane, I stack the drawings one on top of another. The viewer sees one image through another drawing of either the same image, as in my larger pieces, or a different image as in my more abstract pieces.
![“Field Study, Black and Red Algorithm” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3” by artist Blake Conroy. See his portfolio by visiting www.ArtsyShark.com](https://www.artsyshark.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Field-Study-Black-and-Red-Algorithm-copy.jpg)
“Field Study, Black and Red Algorithm” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3”
I am now using the laser to cut paper instead of hand cutting my work out of brass plate. I spent years working to cut a dozen pieces out of metal with a jeweler’s saw. I even made my own saw because no one made a saw long enough for the pieces I wanted to cut. It was slow work but very satisfying.
![“John Martin Conroy” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3” by artist Blake Conroy. See his portfolio by visiting www.ArtsyShark.com](https://www.artsyshark.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/5-John-Martin-Conroy.jpg)
“John Martin Conroy” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3”
It all changed when my daughter was in college. She got a job in the print shop of her school. She cut out of paper in a half hour what I had spent six months cutting out of brass by hand. I had to try this.
![“Elizabeth Hollingsworth” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3”by artist Blake Conroy. See his portfolio by visiting www.ArtsyShark.com](https://www.artsyshark.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/6-Elizabeth-Hollingsworth.jpg)
“Elizabeth Hollingsworth” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3”
As I worked with the laser, my pieces became more and more complex. They also became larger. They became too large for the bed of the cutter. Consequently, I had to break them up into panels.
![“Sunflower” Cut Paper, 23” x 17” x 3” by artist Blake Conroy. See his portfolio by visiting www.ArtsyShark.com](https://www.artsyshark.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/sunflower.jpg)
“Sunflower” Cut Paper, 23” x 17” x 3”
As I was figuring out how to do this and to keep the pages intact, I hung several sheets one on top of the other. That led to stacking multiple pieces cut from the same drawing one on top of another.
![“Field Study, Penumbra” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3” by artist Blake Conroy. See his portfolio by visiting www.ArtsyShark.com](https://www.artsyshark.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Field-Study-Penumbra-copy.jpg)
“Field Study, Penumbra” Cut Paper, 20” x 30” x 3”
After I completed several pieces in this vein, I decided that I should redraw the same images so that I could get greater depth in my images.
![“Field Study, Swallowtail Size” Cut Paper, 30” x 20” x 3” by artist Blake Conroy. See his portfolio by visiting www.ArtsyShark.com](https://www.artsyshark.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/3-Field-Study-Swallotail-Size.jpg)
“Field Study, Swallowtail Size” Cut Paper, 30” x 20” x 3”
From cutting metal to using the laser has been a journey of discovery for me. Now I’m coming full circle experimenting with a water jet cutter on metal. I look forward to seeing where this leads.
Artist Blake Conroy invites you to follow him on Facebook.
The most amazing art and technique! Your work is extraordinary Blake.