My work focuses on organic, sculpted patterns. It’s a human instinct to look for patterns in anything we see. Being able to recognize patterns is what gave humans their evolutionary edge over animals.

I like my work to be forceful and touchable, by giving it an extra dimension, height. The height also creates shadows which sometimes emphasizes the pattern while at other times, depending on the angle of the light, breaking it. The color of my work is usually white. White is a serene color that doesn’t distract from the pattern while providing contrast for the shadows.

Main themes in my work are motion and time, and the place of men in nature. I also like to experiment with whatever inspires me, e.g. nature and geometric forms.

My material of choice is paper mache. Like clay it can be molded in almost any form. But unlike clay it’s light and strong, allowing it to be used in large, hanging wall pieces. The low weight, texture and smell of the material also make it very enjoyable to work with.

Chad Schonten was born and raised in the Netherlands. He has a background in aeronautical engineering and is currently working in the aeronautical industry.