These Intricate Mini Animal Sculptures Are Made Out of Paper

An ambitious creative challenge shared by India-based artists Vaishali Chudasama and Nayan Shrimali led to the production of these super adorable miniature paper animals.

Instead of attempting to fulfill a run-of-the-mill New Year’s resolution, the pair started 2018 off by committing themselves to creating a miniature paper animal sculpture for every single day of the year. Sounds simple enough, right? Actually, this undertaking—officially named 365 Days of Miniature—is far more involved than a rudimentary DIY arts and crafts project. The intricate creative process for each handmade sculpture begins with a sketch. Then, Chudasama and Shrimali cut out each piece before hand-painting on colors and details, and assembling all the parts to create a “2.5-dimensional look.”  After all is said and done, each piece can take anywhere from four to six hours to complete. The final step is to photograph the sculptures in a manner that reflects their subjects’ lives in the wild, which could range from a dove appearing to be in mid-flight or a vulture perched comfortably on a branch.

When the first started, the self-professed “Miniature Paper Cut” artists largely focused on creating tiny bird sculptures to reflect their love of birds, but have since broadened their collection beyond owls, sparrows and other feathered creatures to include animals of all types. To date, they’ve created 640 small paper sculptures (and counting!), which also includes a set of extra tiny paper animals. 

Of creating their nature-inspired project, Chudasama and Shrimali say it was a learning experience. “We enjoyed each bird every day and learned a lot about birds and their nature while making them,” the artists said.

Examples of the artsy duo’s signature miniature paper animals can be purchased from their Etsy shop, NVillustration (either original sculptures or less expensive prints), plus you can also find a ton of the “Miniature Paper Cut” artists’ work on Instagram.