Artist Kirsten Hassenfeld’s ornate paper sculptures, which are on view at Brown University’s Bell Gallery in Providence, Rhode Island through November 1, are essentially gorgeous chandeliers that perfectly combine DIY craftiness with over-the-top opulence.

Hassenfeld’s work references the decorative arts while also questioning them. “My artwork self-consciously acknowledges its own extravagance and impracticality,” she says. Impractical? Maybe. But, if these large-scale works were slightly smaller they’d provide the kind of drama that we’d absolutely love to display at home.

See Kirsten Hassenfeld's work at the David Winton Bell Gallery in Providence, Rhode Island through November 1, 2009.

(Images: Nash Baker)