Playing With Super Power: Nintendo Super NES Classics Guide Super Fans

Artist Spotlight: Alain “Wuppes” Wildgen

Country: Luxembourg

Medium of Art: 3D Paper Dioramas

Facebook.com/paperdiorama | Wuppes.tumblr.com

“The path of every diorama I make is special for me.”

Armed with crafting essentials—pen, ruler, scalpel, glue sticks, foam, and cardboard—Alain “Wuppes” Wildgen has become known for his faithful translations of classic Super NES scenes into stunning 3D paper dioramas.

“The path of every diorama I make is special for me,” began Wildgen, revealing that each project requires a trip back in time. “After choosing a game from my memories, I get started.”

His creative journey began in 2013 after discovering an online papercraft resource and quickly deciding to try his hand at the medium. “Immediately, I had the map from The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past in my head.”

The process was trial and error at first, with Wildgen initially using cardboard to achieve the 3D effect. The material wouldn’t yield clean cut lines, and so he started looking in a craft store for a better material, and came across foam. This inexpensive material resulted in much more precise lines, and with his newfound knowledge Wildgen was able to successfully materialize the Zelda map into reality. “After finishing the Zelda map, I was motivated to do more dioramas of my favorite childhood games. My new hobby was born.”

Speaking to his process, Wildgen explained that he must first find the appropriate assets from sprite websites and map archives. Next, he edits them as needed in an image processing program and prints out each layer for assembly. “Cutting out the individual boxes with a scalpel from the paper and sealing it together with adhesive is very time consuming,” said Wildgen.

His hard work has paid off, though, with the dioramas being displayed at various conventions across Europe, including Luxcon, Gamescom, and Made in Asia.

To save other fans time and encourage the growth of the hobby, Wildgen now posts tutorials online. He also hosts workshops for children to teach them how to bring their own imaginations to life through 3D art. “It makes me very happy that I could inspire people with my hobby.”