Cardboard Sculptures with Marie Anne

Marie-Anne is a French sculptor with over two decades of experience, known for transforming humble cardboard into poetic and sensual artworks. Raised in her father’s carpentry workshop, her imagination was shaped by the scent of wood, the hum of machines, and the tactile dust of craftsmanship. After a career as an art director, she found inspiration in the works of Frank Gehry and Shigeru Ban, turning her focus to cardboard —a material often discarded as disposable —and challenging our ideas of value and waste.

She works exclusively with locally sourced recycled cardboard, using two original techniques. Her “cardboard lace” method involves cutting, wrinkling, and gluing strips over molds to create delicate, airy structures, often for lighting or figurative sculptures. The “laminated cardboard” technique involves layering sheets to create more bold graphic volumes for decorative or functional objects. Her elegant, expressive pieces draw from traditional lighting design and sculpture, reflecting her mission: “De déchet à objet d’émotion” — “From waste to object of emotion”—a call to reimagine what’s possible with overlooked materials.

In her studio, Marie-Anne invites you to see the extraordinary in the ordinary — a reminder that great ideas often start with a simple cardboard box.