Artist Valerie Buess Twists and Turns Paper Into Magical Underwater Creatures

Here at Inhabitat, we've seen paper transformed and reused in many different ways -- including paper folded and stitched into amazing <a title="Artist Valerie Buess Twists, Turns and Folds Paper into Magical Underwater Creatures" href="http://inhabitat.com/brit-artist-bekx-stephens-pleats-acid-free-paper-into-whimsical-sculptures/" target="_blank">sculptures</a>, paper laser cut and glued into<a title="Artist Valerie Buess Twists, Turns and Folds Paper into Magical Underwater Creatures" href="http://inhabitat.com/mathias-bengtsson%E2%80%99s-zebra-like-biodegradable-paper-chair-brings-danish-design-to-the-cutting-edge/" target="_blank"> chairs</a>, and even paper recycled into pulp to create cute <a title="Artist Valerie Buess Twists, Turns and Folds Paper into Magical Underwater Creatures" href="http://inhabitat.com/cool-paper-pulp-alarm-clocks-by-joon-jung-give-mass-produced-objects-a-human-touch/" target="_blank">alarm clocks</a>. But we're especially in love with our latest discovery, which comes direct from artist <a title="Artist Valerie Buess Twists, Turns and Folds Paper into Magical Underwater Creatures" href="http://www.valeriebuess.com/valerie_buess.html" target="_blank">Valerie Buess</a>. Buess' inspired creations turn the pages of unloved books into magical shapes that resemble underwater sea creatures. Click ahead to learn more!

Based in Germany, but born in Switzerland, Valerie Buess has been experimenting with paper for the last twenty years.

By twisting, turning, folding and sometimes adding some color to her work, she creates fantastic organic shapes that seem to be inspired by underwater sea creatures.

Urchins, coral reefs, algae and sea grass made from recycled novels and old books tell stories about the mysteries of the deep sea.

Decorative objects, art pieces or dramatic sculptures, these paper creations are one of a kind.

Some pieces are more abstract and some of them clearly denote what they used to be in their past lives: books.

Check out some more organic creations from Valerie Buess and see how paper turns from a two-dimensional material to fantastic three-dimensional sculptures.