British artist Olly Moss has released a book called Silhouettes From Popular Culture, featuring his paper cut series. It’s a collection of Victorian-style silhouettes of pop culture figures, and since there are no titles or key, the fun is in trying to guess who everyone is. They range from the obvious, like Toy Story’s Woody and Buzz or Boba Fett, to the more difficult to determine, like the cast of Saved By The Bell. I only figured out the latter because of AC Slater’s hair!
The silhouettes often feature a touch of white here and there, such as Mary Poppins’s collar or Richie Tenenbaum’s tennis headband, or even red, as in the rose on the Godfather’s lapel or the “flesh wound” on the Monty Python knight. These touches of color add a lot to the characterization, and are sometimes the identifying factor, but Moss’s skill at rendering actors’ profiles can’t be denied. It’s amazing that someone like Kurt Russell can pop out from the page just from his features. I’m not even sure what character he’s portraying in that particular silhouette but it’s obviously him.
There are definitely some I can’t identify at all, however. If anyone picks up this great coffee table book, help me out: I can’t guess the ones on pages 47 – 48, 63, 75 – 76 (Brad Pitt as something?), 78, 113-116, 119-122. Thanks!
Image via Titan Books
