Ready to Fold

by Jan

When you're bored and your glance falls upon a blank sheet of paper, what do you see? Is it scrap for doodling, waste that needs tidying, or raw material for any one of a thousand different 3-dimensional sculptures? If you picked the last option, you're probably already familiar with the art of origami. This varied art has been delighting crafters for centuries with the simplest of supplies.

Origami is Japanese for "folding paper"--a simple name for what can be an incredibly complex art. In origami's early days, as far back as the sixth century AD, paper was an expensive item. Origami was used to fashion good luck tokens, wedding accessories for noblemen, and religious artifacts. Patterns were passed down verbally from generation to generation. As paper became less expensive, origami became a popular pastime throughout Japan. Over time, this hobby spread across the continents, until people all over the world came to learn the difference between mountain folds and valley folds as they shaped colorful squares of paper into all sorts of objects. Today, ancient traditional patterns like cranes and vases have been joined by paper interpretations of baby bottles and even Elvis.

I can't remember who showed me my first origami fold, but I do remember crafting countless paper cups from the scratchy brown paper towels found in the bathroom of my grammar school. And later on, no church bulletin was safe when I got an itch to make a paper balloon during a tedious church service. When I discovered that the Rochester Origami Club (ROC) meets at Borders Books in Henrietta, NY on the second Wednesday of each month, I quickly made plans to visit these fellow paper enthusiasts.

I battled a blustery winter night to make it to Borders' Café just past 7:00. The club was easy to identify, with brightly colored squares of folding paper and paper sculptures forming their table's centerpiece. After brief introductions, we quickly got busy with the folding.

Each month, club members bring patterns to share, and since we were meeting on Valentine's Day, many of the projects were heart-themed. Regular attendee Jim "Professor Rem" Remenicky showed us how to fold a sheet printed with a romantic poem into a heart-topped package. Founding member Jim Adams offered another heart-shaped piece as well as a more advanced rocket of his own design, and co-founder Edie Kort demonstrated a group of interlocking hearts that could be used to decorate a note card or package. The conversation was light and friendly assistance was at the ready for novice folders such as myself.

The ROC has been meeting at Borders since the fall of 1998. Core members are joined each month by a variety of folks–from home-schooled kids to retirees. "We have a wide range of people who come," says Kort. "Some have mathematical or engineering backgrounds; some have more 'artsy' backgrounds. Everyone is welcome. We try to teach a variety of models, depending on the audience. Sometimes we work with mostly basic folds, sometimes more advanced folds, and usually a variety." At the meeting I attended, the newbies included one artsy type (me) and one computer scientist, Jonas Karlsson.

Karlsson had begun folding a few months previous, and has since crafted a variety of geometric shapes which he has used to make a mobile, gift containers for chocolate covered espresso beans, as well as a tower that is under constant construction at his work station. His interest in origami seems especially appropriate, given his employer. "I work at Xerox's Wilson Center for Research and Technology. Being at Xerox gives me access to large amounts of paper!" Karlsson makes use of printout cover pages that would otherwise end up in office recycling bins.

Club members have been folding for differing amounts of time. For Kort, it's been an interest since childhood. Adams became interested in Origami five or six years ago. But even someone who has only recently picked up this craft has got to wonder, "What do I do with all the stuff I make?" There's only so much room for displaying pieces on shelves or in an office cube! Adams gives many of his pieces away. "I have many bookcases full of origami, both at home and at work," he says. "When someone comments that a particular models catches their fancy, I give it to them. We have many children visiting our home and we try to make sure they go away with something. I've also made two extensive donations of my collection to the Memorial Art Gallery as part of their Christmas Tree decorations in 1998 and 1999."

The ROC members are a relaxed and friendly bunch, allowing for the occasional use of glue and scissors, tools frowned upon in some origami circles. And, not being a purist, Kort also adds the Dutch art of tea bag folding to her repertoire. She combines tea bag pieces with rubber-stamping to create some nifty note cards. If you're in the Rochester area, watch for her courses on this craft offered at Stamps to Di For.

If you're looking for a portable craft that you can work on just about anywhere, origami could be just the thing.

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