Origami Paper: Not Just For Folding Anymore!

     This month at Golden Seed Arts & Media we’re having fun with origami paper. Origami is the ancient Japanese art of paper folding which, traditionally, called for paper to be skillfully molded into such objects as flowers, animals and insects. They even created beautiful, handcrafted papers to add an artistic dimension to their work.

     Although you may not realize it, you are probably already quite familiar with origami. Who didn’t, sometime during their childhood, take a piece of paper and pleat it in accordion style to make a fan on a hot day or experiment with different designs for paper airplanes? Or make a Fortuneteller? Or a paper football?

The Origins of Japanese Origami
     Paper as we know it was first invented in China about 105 A.D. and introduced to Japan by Buddhist monks sometime during the 6^th century. Early on, since paper was quite expensive and considered a luxury item, origami was reserved strictly for religious ceremonies.
     Later, as popularity of the art grew, it became part of other ceremonies as well. During the Heian period (794-1185) Samurai Warriors added noshi, tokens of good luck made from folded strips of paper, to the gifts they exchanged. There is even a reference in a poem written by Ihara Saikaku in 1680 describing the origami butterflies that represented the bride and groom in Shinto weddings.
     Originally, origami techniques were passed along through oral tradition but the first book on the subject, the ‘Tsutsumi-no Ki’, was published by Sadatake Ise in 1764 and was strictly concerned with ceremonial folds, such as the noshi. The first book dedicated to purely recreational origami, the ‘Senbazuru Orikata’ or “How to Fold One Thousand Cranes”, appeared in 1797.

Origami Goes Global

     Although the Japanese are famous for elevating origami to an art form, people around the world have been playing with paper for more than a thousand years. The Chinese have quite a history with the art of paper folding (which they call ‘Zhe Zhi’), contending, in fact, that origami actually originated in China. And there is some evidence dating from at least 1,000 A.D. to back up their claim in the form of the ‘yuanbao’ (paper folded to look like gold nuggets that are then burned as an offering for deceased relatives) and Golden Venture Folding (3D triangular units of paper that are assembled into large models).
     The first evidence that origami had spread to Europe came in an illustration of a small folded paper boat in the 1490 book “De Sphaera Muni”. Origami historians conjecture that paper folding in Europe might have come from the Moors, who’d already been practicing the art for centuries, rather than via the Silk Road from the orient as one might assume.
     It wasn’t until the 1950’s that origami became the popular global sensation we know today, a movement fostered by Akira Yoshizana and Sam Randlett’s development of the standardized system of symbols currently used in origami diagrams. There are now literally thousands of origami books, free diagrams and videos available on the internet.

Types of Origami Paper

     Kami (meaning ‘paper’ in Japanese) is a thin paper specifically created to hold a crease well (the only real requirement for origami paper!). The most widely used for origami, it was originally developed for use in schools. Origami paper now comes in lots of grades, types, sizes, colors and patterns. Typically, they are square in shape but can also be round or rectangular, and are colored on one side and white on the other, though there are exceptions to this as well.

Some of the different kinds of origami papers (with a few examples) include: 

·         Duo paper which has one color on the top and another on the bottom and is employed for projects where both ends of the paper will be visible.

 

·         Foil paper which has a metallic finish on one side but is white on the other.

·         Washi paper which is softer and more textured than ordinary paper. There are actually many different kinds of washi made from different plant fibers.

·         Yuzen or Chiyogami paper which is a kind of washi paper that is decorated by Japanese imagery, such as that seen on traditional Japanese kimonos. In earlier times, the repeating pattern on chiyogami paper was applied with woodblocks but today is achieved through silkscreen techniques.

 

·         Shinwazome paper which is another type of printed washi that is thick in texture because of embossed and raised patterns. My personal favorite, shinwazome is the most luxurious of the papers because it is often embossed with gold.

 

·         Monigami paper is the same color on both sides and has a leather-like texture because it is made from the bark of the Mulberry Tree. Because of its durability and pliability, monigami paper is used for projects needing a crinkled texture.

     While origami paper has ancient origins, in recent times artisans have found more uses for these gorgeous papers than just folding them into amazing shapes. Origami paper is not only beautiful, but versatile as well. I’m having a great time exploring ways of incorporating it with a variety of different techniques and mediums to produce some pretty stunning results. Check out my origami paper creations at The Golden Seed (click on the 'Bazaar' tab)!