Two Artists Create Miniature Birds By Using Hand-Cut Painted Paper

India-based artists Nayan Shrimali and Vaishali Chudasama create mini bird illustrations by using hand-cut painted paper. The amazing paper sparrows, doves, owls, and more are all part of the ongoing paper art project, titled 365 Days of Miniature. Check out these tiny birds that are even cuter than themselves!

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Burrowing Owl

I, Vaishali, and my partner Nayan make miniature paper-cut artworks inspired by nature. We both are passionate birders and we love being in nature and working for nature. We have done our studies in art and design. I (Vaishali) do the watercolor and Nayan does the paper cutting and that's how our team works.

We are soon going to start our own individual ventures concentrating on different types of art related to wildlife which will further broaden our field of art and experience.

Red-Vented Bubul

Green-Backed Heron

We got our first job together in NID as miniature model makers in 2014. We worked there for two years and during that time we started our own venture NVillustration in 2015. We kept exploring the medium of paper and wood and created artworks with them. In 2016 we left our job and started working as full-time paper cut artists. We worked on many different topics but nature was always our base and our first love. And in 2018, we started our 1000-day series to raise awareness about our nature. Before paper art, we used to create miniature architectural models.

Osprey

Bearded Reedling

Our story began on a rainy day in 2017. We were at our favorite place, a water canal near our studio and a bright yellow colored bird (golden oriole) flew above our heads. At that time we didn’t know what bird was, but his bright yellow color caught our eye. We were so mesmerized by that beautiful bird, we just kept looking at him. The next day our search for the oriole began and it took us to many different places and during that time we discovered other birds like drongo, stilts, cormorants, ducks and many more. It was so fascinating to know that all these different species of birds are living around us which we were not aware of. We decided to share the beauty and significance of these birds with the world through our art. We took up this challenge of making highly detailed birds every single day and in miniature size so that it creates more curiosity for the viewers and engages them in learning more about the birds.

Asian Koel

Peregrine Falcon

We began our series on 1st January 2018. Initially, it was a 30-day challenge, but after the completion of the first month, we got an amazing response. So we decided to continue it for the whole year. But after the first year, we couldn’t stop because there were so many other species that needed conservation and awareness. So finally we extended our challenge to 1000 artworks and also included animals and plants in it. We completed our 1000th artwork on 27th September 2020.

This series is dedicated to our little feathered friends as a gesture of thankfulness for their immense love and support in our lives. Hope that the world also understands the significance of birds and animals in their lives and helps to save them. The main motive of our series is to spread awareness and knowledge about nature through art.

Albino Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

Shama Vs Satsumadori

The most challenging part is to paint the perfect shade of the plumage of a bird on tiny paper cut pieces and I do not use any magnifying lens to paint or cut my artworks. We completely work with our naked eyes.

The most rewarding part is photography when we get to make these tiny paper cuts come to life by photographing them in their natural habitat. We always try to find the location which complements the natural habitat of the species we are photographing.

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