A SALISBURY artist is bringing her memories to life as part of a new paper cutting exhibition in the city.

Vanessa Stone’s Slices of Life opens from February 14 at Salisbury Museum.

The paper cutting artist went to school in Salisbury and comes from a South Wiltshire family that stretches back hundreds of years.

The exhibition focuses on work sparked by her memories of growing up in the city and the surrounding landscape.

Vanessa said: “I use a scalpel to “draw” into paper, cutting away to make an image come from the surface of the paper. I like to pare things down to the essentials of line, colour and composition and still capture the spirit of the place or something I have seen.

“Paper cutting is very much a subtracting process. You have to be bold and committed as there is no grey area with a scalpel cut line and it is thrilling to use paper and a knife to make art.”

After years of specialising in textiles – originally training in carpet and rug design – Vanessa started cutting into paper in 2006.

Inspired by the work of artists such as Henri Matisse and increasingly aware of the work of contemporary artists such as Rob Ryan and Beatrice Coron, she describes her journey into paper cutting as a compelling “quest for a sharper line, a more clean composition, a flatter surface”.

She added: “People often comment that I must be very patient. It makes me smile. I suppose I am but paper cutting is a very addictive process as you see it grow as you work.”