Silhouette Cutting

For nearly thirty years Charles Burns, aka the Roving Artist, has been cutting silhouettes at weddings, corporate events, and charity dos. Famous for the speed and accuracy of his portraits – as well as the enthusiasm with which he approaches them – his trademark surgical scissors are never far from his hand. An ancient art brought back to life.

Silhouette portraits first became popular during the Georgian and Regency periods (think Jane Austen). Today, anybody in the world can have their silhouettes cut by Charles, either via his virtual Zoom studio or by booking him to attend an event. Whether cut online or in person, you’ll be amazed by the skill with which he cut them, as well as his wit and charm as he does so.

Charles has taken a musty, long-forgotten art and reinvented it as an engaging entertainment for the twenty-first century. His equipment – a pair of scissors and a pocketful of paper – has not changed since Jane Austen’s time. His skill and presentation, on the other hand, is unmistakably fresh and modern. Watching Charles cut a silhouette is an object lesson in hand-eye coordination.