These charming animal silhouettes are coloured using nature

Artist Nikolai Tolstyh threw pens and paints aside for a series of drawings, using the Russian countryside to illustrate his animals.

So far he has created vibrant giraffes, foxes, bears and more, each very precisely and satisfyingly cut.

Perhaps the nicest thing about them is his choice of backdrops, which don’t always match the animal’s actual colour.

A bear is brought to life with green grass for instance, and yet it still captures the beast’s texture and movement.

Papercutting as art dates back to the 6th century in China, but didn’t make it to Europe until the 16th or 17th century.


 All pictures: Nikolai Tolstyh