TYPES OF ORIGAMI

Origami has different types as well, and it's a great thing. In fact, folding paper counts as the art of origami, regardless of culture and origin. Now let's check out the different types of origami:

1. ACTION ORIGAMI: This kind of origami can be animated. For example, the flapping bird( crane ) is a part of action origami. Models in which the final assembly includes blowing up a water bomb, are also classified as action origami. Action origami toys are meant to amuse, but some are designed to inspire wonder. Basically, if an origami model requires some sort of action, such as pulling, inflating, rolling, and more, for the enhancement of the final creation, it can very well be considered a part of action origami. Some examples of action origami are the Jumping Frog and the traditional origami crane.

  

2. MODULAR ORIGAMI: The kind of origami in which you use two or more sheets of paper and join them using origami techniques to create a much larger model is called modular origami. One can also term this unit origami because several units of paper are joined together to form a complete model. Each piece of paper is folded into a unit of a particular model, then several of them are made and inserted into one another through flaps or pockets. These insertions create friction/tension that holds the model tight. Check out this beautiful swan and this Infinity Cube I made while watching the instructions in a video on YouTube:

 

3. ORIGAMI TESSELLATIONS: A tessellation is a collection of figures filling a plane without any overlaps or gaps. In origami, pleats are used to connect molecules such as twist folds together in a repeating fashion. What is a pleat? Well, you remember that paper fan we used to make in our childhood? That's called a pleat. You can call a tessellation, a pattern, perhaps. Some examples of tessellations are given below:

 

4. KIRIGAMI: Kirigami is a variation of origami. It is a Japanese term for paper cutting. In Kirigami, you fold the paper, as well as cut the paper, resulting in a beautiful 3D design that stands away from the paper. Typically, Kirigami starts with a folded design, which is then unfolded, after which we cut the paper at the specific creases for the model to stand out to get the finished creation. One can get to see symmetry at its best in Kirigami models! An example of kirigami is as follows:

                   The Story of Sadako Sasaki

Sadako Sasaki was a Japanese girl who became a victim of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II. She was only two years old when the bombs were dropped. She is remembered through the story of the more than one thousand origami cranes she folded before her death. She died, at the age of 12, on October 25, 1955, at the Hiroshima Red Cross Hospital.

On the fateful day of the bombing of Hiroshima, Sadako was at home, about 1.6 km away from ground zero. She was blown out the window and her mother ran out to find her, suspecting she may be dead. Instead, she found her alive with no apparent injuries. While they were fleeing, Sadako and her mother were caught in black rain. Her grandmother ran back inside and died near the house, apparently trying to escape fires by hiding in a cistern.

Sadako grew up like her peers, becoming an important class relay race team member. In November 1954, Sadako developed swellings on her neck and behind her ears. In January 1955, purpura had formed on her legs. Subsequently, she was diagnosed with acute malignant lymph gland leukemia. She was hospitalized on February 21, 1955, and given no more than a year to live. She was admitted as a patient to the Hiroshima Red Cross Hospital for treatment and given blood transfusions on February 21, 1955. When she was admitted, her white blood cell count was six times higher than the average child's.

In August 1955, she was moved into a room with a girl named Kiyo, a junior high school student who was 2 years older than her. Shortly after, beautiful origami cranes were brought to her home from a local high school club. Chizuke Hamamoto, Sasaki's friend, narrated the legend of the origami cranes to her. Determined, she set a goal that she would fold 1,000 of them, which was believed to grant the folder a wish. Although she had plenty of free time during her days in the hospital, Sasaki lacked paper, so she used medicine wrappings and whatever else she could scrounge; including going to other patients' rooms to ask for the paper from their get-well presents. Her best friend, Chizuko, also brought paper from school for Sasaki to use.

A popular version of the story is that Sasaki fell short of her goal of folding 1,000 cranes, having folded only 644 before her death, and that her friends completed the 1,000 and buried them all with her. (This comes from the novelized version of her life, Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes.) However, an exhibit that appeared in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum stated that by the end of August 1955, Sasaki had achieved her goal and continued to fold 300 more cranes. Sadako's older brother, Masahiro Sasaki, says in his book The Complete Story of Sadako Sasaki that she exceeded her goal.

Sadako Sasaki has become an international symbol of peace and a peaceful world. Sasaki is a heroine for many Japanese girls. Japanese children fold the classic, yet intriguing origami crane in memory of Sadako. Dedicated to Sasaki, people all over Japan celebrate the 6th of August as the Annual Peace Day.

Statue of Sadako Sasaki

 in Peace Park, Seattle, Washington

The Life of Akira Yoshizawa, the Grandmaster of Origami

                                                          AKIRA YOSHIZAWA 吉澤 章

Akira Yoshizawa was an origamist highly regarded as the Grandmaster of origami. He is credited for raising origami from a craft to a living art. He used to believe that folding an origami model in the air would surround the creation with life!

Yoshizawa was born on the 14th of March, 1911, in Kaminokawa, Japan, to the family of a dairy farmer. As a child, he used to take pleasure in teaching himself origami. He moved into a factory job in Tokyo when he was only 13 years old. His passion for origami was rekindled in his early twenties when he was promoted from a factory worker to a technical draftsman. He was to teach geometry to junior employees. Here, Yoshizawa used the traditional art of origami to understand and communicate geometrical problems.

In 1937, Yoshizawa left his factory job to pursue his passion, origami, full-time. His following 20 years were in total poverty; earning his living by selling tsukudani( a preserved Japanese condiment usually made of seaweed). During World War II, Yoshizawa served in the army medical corps. He used to make origami models to cheer up sick patients, but he fell ill during that time and was sent back to Japan. His origami work was included in the 1944 book Origami Shuko by Isao Honda. However, his career was actually launched when his work was included in the January 1952 issue of the magazine Asahi Graph, which included the 12 zodiac signs commissioned by a magazine.

1954 his first monograph, Atarashii Origami Geijutsu ( New Origami Art), was published. In this work, he established the Yoshizawa-Randlett System, a system you will learn about in later posts. This system is widely used by origamists and paper folders. This publication helped Yoshizawa out of his poverty. He founded the International Origami Centre in Tokyo in 1954 when he was 43. Yoshizawa lent many of his own origami models to exhibitions around the world. He never sold his figures, he felt immense pleasure just giving the models as gifts to people or letting exhibitions borrow them.

Yoshizawa was the pioneer of many techniques used in origami, but wet-folding is one of his most significant contributions. In wet-folding, you first dampen the paper using water, and then the paper can be manipulated easily, resulting in figures that look aesthetically rounded and curved, a more sculpted look. Wet folding can be used in flashers as well! You put a rubber band on a closed flasher, dip it in water, and leave it out to dry. Then when you open it, it will spring back into the closed position rapidly. He was known to say, " When you fold, the ritual and the act of creation is more important than the final result. When your hands are busy, your heart is serene."

Yoshizawa, at the age of 94, passed away in Itabashi, Tokyo, due to pneumonia complications, leaving a beautiful legacy in the world of origami.

 

Origami: Types and Types of Paper

                                                  ORIGAMI: Types of Paper

So, we all know that origami is an art form wherein we take a piece of paper of any shape and fold that paper to form what we call an origami model. We must remember, that origami originated in Japan, and the rudimentary sets of paper needed for folding were developed in Japan. However, there is no proof out there about how the play models of origami came about in Japan. But, there is a wide knowledge of paper in the world of origami. Here, let's talk about the modern kinds of paper that we can and should use in origami:

1. KAMI  PAPER:

 "Kami" means "paper" in Japanese. Well, kami paper, is probably the most commonly accepted and usable paper in the world of origami. It is a thin, yet sharp paper, that is internationally used. If a beginner were to describe kami paper, he/she would probably say that it is the best paper for beginners and casual folders. Usually, it is white on one side and colored on the other. Since the paper is so crisp and sharp, it holds creases well, and hence is recommended for someone who folds rather simply. Well, it isn't that high-quality paper, but it is worth using!

2. WYNDSTONE MARBLE PAPER:

Now this is worth calling a beauty of a paper. It is a heavy, durable, rustic paper used for making models requiring a higher skill set and high folding skills. Basically, it is a kind of paper that is for people who fold complex or intermediate kinds of models. This kind of paper isn't that common, it is hard to find. However, Wyndstone paper is considered the best for folding something called a Flasher. A Flasher is usually an intermediate or high-intermediate model, which opens and closes into wonderful, artistic patterns. Usually, a flasher gets compressed into a spiral, and that is the thing that opens and closes into beautiful patterns. A flasher has a typical pattern, on which creases must be made to compress the thing. A flasher needs to stay durable, otherwise, it won't stay for too long and will get worn out. Now you know why we should use Wyndstone paper for folding a flasher!

3. FOIL PAPER

This is high-quality Japanese paper, with a metallic shine on one side and paper on the other. Foil paper is something you would prefer if you are folding some complex or high-intermediate models. I've used only two colors of this kind of paper, gold, and silver. I suppose These two colors come with a pack of Kami paper. Well, there are many advantages to using this kind of paper. A) You get the chance to see your model beautifully covered in shine and metal( the metallic look), B) Foil paper used for folding a Flasher can really grant you the "flashy" look of the pattern, C) Almost anything is possible to fold with foil paper.

4. MONEY BILLS!

People use money bills for folding! Yes, they do! And a fun fact for you: origami using money bills is called " Moneygami". Yes, it's a portmanteau of the words money and origami. The details in the notes can be used for your origami models! You can divide the rectangular money bill into squares to economize:)

5. Magazine, junk mail, and typing paper:

YOU ALL KNOW WHAT THAT IS, right? Still, pretty good to use!

These are just some of the kinds of paper avail for your use in origami.  You might've understood by now, that different kinds of paper are suitable for different kinds of models!

                        ORIGAMI and ME

Hey, world! I'm Subeer! You might've understood from the title that this blog is about origami. Well, it's a long, long, long, long, long thing to read, so I'm going to start simple. I discovered the art of origami when the Covid-19 pandemic struck the entire world, and of course, India too. And I have to agree, that it was one of those dark times. With the pandemic's darkness, some people started seeing that faint light in the darkness. And I guess you can say I was a part of those people. Everyone discovered new stuff, some people took up painting, and some became "self-proclaimed chefs/cooks". And I, trying not to be last in the race of " learning new skills", discovered the beautiful art of origami. I started off simple, I had A-4-sized papers all around the house, and I used to fold a variety of models from those papers. And boy, that was a joy. It gave me tons of pleasure and satisfaction, and I felt quite proud of myself. I wasn't the kind of guy who knew 3rd-grade geometry and couldn't align the folds properly.

I used to watch youtube videos all day, of course in my free time, and used to fold models. I still remember the first-ever origami model I had ever made during that time. It was simple, yet fun to play with. It was a fidget toy, I used to pop the center in and out and that was it. And it was from a square of orange paper. I felt proud of myself, to be honest. And anyone could do it! Those were amazing days, as I was a beginner in the world of origami, and I was learning and folding along. Gradually, my folding level went from beginner to intermediate,  then high-intermediate, and finally complex. I'VE DESIGNED A FEW MODELS TOO! But yeah, I can't make quite the effort to remember the folds, do it again a couple of times, and finally publish the thing with diagrams. So, it has been a great journey, and I do consider myself a budding origamist! Well, I would move on to the next post, you should too! Cheers:)