Daniel Agdag

Public Office

Paper sculptor

Vernean cities and mechanics

Daniel creates cardboard models of imaginary scenes
He is inspired by his mother’s craft as a seamstress
Each work can take between a month and a year to create

Working from his inner-city studio in Melbourne, Australia, Daniel Agdag draws on his film-making career and his mother’s history to design entire sets and structures. His micro worlds are intricately hand-built from cardboard, brown paper, tracing paper and thread. First inspired by his neighbour’s architectural models, Daniel recognised in cardboard a versatile medium to share his dream-like concepts. The sculptures are three-dimensional drawings that grow organically and instinctively during the building process. Daniel works with a sharp scalpel, glue and thread.

Interview

©_PaoloCAPPELLI

©_PaoloCAPPELLI

Where do you draw inspiration?: Each work is a little narrative: a collage of imagery. For example, the airship works are about my mum, who came from Europe without family. These machines seem like they have control, but they are at the peril of the wind, so they will go where the wind takes them.
Does your material connect to your history?: My mother is a seamstress, so I have borrowed her trace paper and thread to add to the narratives I construct from cardboard. I have inherited a limited supply of her materials. They are familiar items, but they are also imagined familiar items.
Do you begin with a sketch, or do you just start making?: I make general shapes of what I wish to build, and then I get started. I cut sections of cardboard out and add sections to it until it feels right in my eye. It is completely intuitive. I find this technique allows for quirky little elements to come about.
Do you have any advice for other creatives?: There is no right way of doing anything creative. I do not think there is any right way of doing anything, in fact! You should just do whatever you feel is right. And I think if you let that lead you, then that will create a road for you. I truly believe that.

Daniel Agdag is an expert artisan: he began his career in 2001