# Hand Shadow Art: A Differentiable Rendering Perspective

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.21252 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.21252/

## Key facts

- Cited by 1 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 27 May 2025.

## Built on by (most cited first, 1 of 1)

- [Mirror Illusion Art](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2607.02015/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Shadow art is an exciting form of sculptural art that produces captivating artistic effects through the 2D shadows cast by 3D shapes. Hand shadows, also known as shadow puppetry or shadowgraphy, involve creating various shapes and figures using your hands and fingers to cast meaningful shadows on a wall. In this work, we propose a differentiable rendering-based approach to deform hand models such that they cast a shadow consistent with a desired target image and the associated lighting configuration. We showcase the results of shadows cast by a pair of two hands and the interpolation of hand poses between two desired shadow images. We believe that this work will be a useful tool for the graphics community.