Forest Folks by Zim & Zou

 Zim & Zou are a duo of French artists who specialize in papercraft. I particularly enjoy their fungi inspired village, part of Forest Folks.


I love this sculpture for a number of reasons. A mushroom city is just so wondrous and fantastical. The variation in scale, between the tallest fungus in the back and the smallest house on the stump, further adds to the whimsical atmosphere. I love the restricted colour scheme; I think the reds, pinks, and oranges go wonderfully with the greens and teals. All of the patters and bright saturated colours remind me of a cartoon, despite the sculpture being very real. But I think my favourite detail of all is all the little folks scattered about. I love their simplicity and almost blob-like structure.

On their website, the artists share that the work is about nature’s power to grow and evolve. Nature, especially plants, is incredibly important and has shaped the world we live in today. It is important to be able to coexist with the powerful force that surrounds us without destroying it. Nature, like paper, can be fragile and susceptible to collapse. Forest Folks shows a community thriving alongside their environment. As the artists said, “this mysterious people is evolving, building, and living right in the heart of the nature, revealing a fragment of their daily life.”

For more on this work, check out this article from “This is Colossal.”

Also feel free to look at this page of Zim & Zou’s website, also on this sculpture.


I’ll see you next time

    - Pete 

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