Allen Chamberland
Boston, MA
"It makes me feel good when people enjoy what I do."
Despite physical disabilities that previously limited his financial opportunities, Allen (he/him/his) devotes himself to making intricate and beautiful papercutting works. His motivation to create work is to “keep busy and make people happy.” Allen has been on ArtLifting’s platform since the very beginning. He was one of ArtLifting’s first ever exhibiting artists and now proudly displays his work across many clients’ walls across the country.
Allen used to sell his artwork as a street vendor, immersed in the informal artist economy of Boston. He realized then, that people wanted to buy his work, a life changing realization for any artist. His loves selling through ArtLifting because it allows him to to share his vision. He says, "It makes me feel good when people enjoy what I do." He often draws upon architectural images with clean lines that he able to recreate with paper through his craft and technique.
Each of Allen’s pieces is made with a single sheet of black paper. Using an inexpensive and accessible material allows Allen to crumple it up and start over after a mistake. Over the years, he has refined his process while delving deeper into the world of papercutting, a process that requires acute attention to detail. He chooses to create his work out of paper because it is inexpensive. He explains, "You don’t mind if you mess it up. If you do, then you just crumple it up and get a new piece of paper."
