Artist Recreated Scenes from Sticky Tape

An artist has recreated scenes from some of his favourite movies in stunning detail - using nothing more than brown parcel tape.

At first glance it appears they could've been made using state-of-the art computer software but this 'Tape Art' is created by layering strips of ordinary brown tape on to a light box.

The box is then illuminated to reveal the picture in all its splendour.

Scenes from classic films including Alfred Hitchcock's thrillers '39 Steps' and 'Spellbound' have been recreated in such detail they almost look as if they could be the original film strip.

Artist Mark Khaisman said using tape in this way was just another way of painting.
The 51-year-old said: "The work is made from layer upon layer of translucent packing tape, applied to clear Plexiglas and placed in front of a light box to give the image shadow and depth.

'I see my tape art as a form of painting.' says Ukrainian born Mark Khaisman. He studied art and architecture in Moscow, and now lives and works in Philadelphia USA where he creates his striking Tapeworks canvases

He previously worked on stained-glass windows before taking up the more unusual medium of parcel tape.

But, despite seeming to be very different types of art, Mr Khaisman said they were both examples of what he calls 'painting with light'.

The idea for tape art actually came from his 51 year old wife Elena, an art teacher, who had been teaching her pupils how to create pictures with masking tape.

He said: 'About five to six years ago I was thinking about other ways of painting with light.''My wife was doing an art project with kids using colour masking tape and that gave me an idea.'

'I tried to use translucent packing tape on backlit material assuming that it might work, and it did.'

'My art is a conversation with light, I started it like a traditional stained-glass artist, but with tape.' Mr Khaisman uses around three rolls of 100 metre packing tape and takes up to a week to create just one extraordinary picture.

Different shades are created by building up the thickness of the tape, the darkest sections of the pictures can require up to 10 layers of tape.

Incredibly, Mr Khaisman doesn't sketch out the image first but, instead, works directly onto the light boxes, using photos and film stills as a reference.

He said: "I chose scenes from my favourite films, I particularly enjoy Hitchcock's work.
'I use photographs, I start by blowing them up to actual size to get proportions right and then I simply build the image.'

Mark's original tape works, which are about four feet in height, are being snapped up for as much as £6,000.

Mr Khaisman said he had been inundated with emails from all sorts of people intrigued by his work.

He said: 'I get a lot of of "wows" from people and even once got an email which simply read 'You sir are one hell of an artist...thanks for doing what you do.'