animal

226: It’s a Mammoth

| wonko

I have always loved oddball humour, and when I discovered the panels by Gary Larson I became an addict, buying everything he published. His acerbic observations of scientific concepts amused me greatly, combined with his caveman humour and we come close to my fav Larson comic of all time – the experiments in early microscopy shown in this panel. This is doubly accurate as, unlike dinosaurs, Mammoths are a relatively recent extinction, with frozen specimens found still to have plant material in their gut and butchery marks on their bones – I guess Mammoth burgers were tasty to early hominids.

Looking for elephantine, I came across a Woolly mammoth in “Origami Zoo” by Robert Lang thus completing a “hat-trick” of models by him:

this figurative mammoth is lovely – seemingly correct morphologically, the hunched and raised shoulders and relatively demure hind quarters, lovely curly tusks, placid expression and gently curling trunk

This model was nearly a fail, using copy paper – some very thick layers inside make shaping the body very difficult an the paper fatigue nearly split at the shoulders – gently gently was necessary at the collapse stage.

Very happy with this as a first fold, and will fold it again I think with some nice textured paper – this would probably work in large format also as you could model toes and a more complete facial expression. I used a square cut from A3 copy paper and the final model was small and tight – thinner paper would have helped I guess.

225: Lang’s Green Tree Frog

| wonko

When I first saw this model, in “Origami Design Secrets” I knew I wanted to try it:

Such a torturous but interesting fold, initial pleating followed by some amazing swivel and sink folds to get the body differentiated from the legs, this is my pose for this model – I like that it looks like ti is crawling and I thought much more interesting that being symmetrical.

there is much to be in awe of with this model – I am and I managed to fold it; the toes, the eyes and the overall accuracy of the morphology are simply amazing – more proof that Robert lang is a maestro mathematician and true artist in his designs.

This model took ages as I was fastidious with my folding, accuracy mattered but wow, no I mean WOW! What a difference good paper makes – I did not attempt this with copy paper – there is a spread/sink/swivel move that would shred the paper early on so I used a sheet of tissue foil and am glad I did.

224: Lab Rat

| wonko

Tomorrow marks the beginning of Science Week and I thought it appropriate to mark the occasion with a lab rat:

This delightful model by Robert Lang has a lovely shape but is very cruel on the paper it is made from (so much so that it split due to tension and fatigue along the neck and back)

I like this base, and am satisfied with this as a first fold of the model – I learnt a lot attempting it and will fold it again with more suitable paper I think – copy paper is a cruel mistress sometimes.

223: Yoshizawa’s Monkey

| wonko

I like a figurative compound model, and when it is designed by a master like Akira Yoshizawa then it feels like a privilege to fold it:

This is one of his monkeys, in two pieces – I love the pose, the simple but expressive face, posture and all – very clever.

Made with 2 bird bases, then each part diverging in method yet strangely symmetric, coalescing into a top and tail that then slots together.

This is a lot like the more complex “swivel monkey” which I will torture myself with later, for my first fold I am happy with this result. Taken from “Creative Origami”, a masterwork entirely in Japanese, most models have no landmarks, you fold them by eye, making each fold unique and allowing the folder to add their own character – nice.

220: Saint Mary Mackillop

| wonko

Apparently today is the feast for St Mary Mackillop – the first Australian who has been verified to do enough miracles to qualify as a saint.

Interestingly, I drive past the church school she used to teach in in South Brisbane. I would love to say I actually knew this, but a staff member mentioned it during a meeting so I fired up my collection of nuns for a suitable model to provide the tribute.

A relatively simple box pleating exercise designed by Fred Rhom called “Vera Cruz” this works well for the purpose.

there are a few things you can vary here as most is folded without landmark – the height of the cross, the tallness of the nun etc, nice figurative model.

219: Redback Spider

| wonko

This weekend marks the 20th anniversary of a technology that changed my life – The World Wide Web:

Tim Berners Lee posted the first web page ever and the model of online information sharing was changed forever. I thought a SPIDER was appropriate to mark the occasion and an Australian one to boot – given a large network of networks in Oz joined the world wide network of networks to form what we now know as the INTERNET (I am old enough to remember when there was no net).

This was a torturous fold – fiddly beyond measure and I am so glad I started with a large format sheet of tissue foil instead of even attempting it with copy paper – the legs are like 12 thicknesses, thinned down (proving that Mythbusters were wrong). Beautifully thin legs, plump inflated body and ferocious looking fangs – it is really creepy.

The instructions were almost completely diagrammatic, with only occasional random spanish annotations so I had to improvise, or look forward/backwards to work out what was happening in a bunch of places.

There is something vaguely creepy about putting a spiders head in your mouth the blow up the abdomen, even though I knew it was paper it just felt creepy. The instructions were deceptively complex – I have grown to hate the “repeat” symbol which hides hours of work. I am really quite chuffed however with the result and think it looks suitably like a redback spider (we have them on the northern side of our house), the typical front bundle of legs behind a large abdomen are quite distinctive. It is a variation of the “Black Widow” designed by Manuel Sirgo

218: A Thousand Cranes for Peace

| wonko

During the final stages of World War II in 1945, the United States conducted two atomic bombings against the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan, the first on August 6, 1945 and the second on August 9, 1945. These two events are the only use of nuclear weapons in war to date.

For my birthday this year (June 4), my daughter bought me 1000 sheets of coloured origami paper so that I could attempt to fold 1000 cranes by today, August 6, Hiroshima Day.

The First and Last folds were done here at home – first was a microgami version (folded from a 1cm square) to pay homage to the importance of the individual in the enormous task; the last was a simple white fold, completed in the relative safety and warmth of my lounge room while watching telly last night.

I had many helpers – many hands make light work – thank you to the hundreds of kids and teachers who helped, provided encouragement or simply asked what I was doing and why – I hope it was instructive. I also had a passive collection (I positioned a piggy bank near by for punters to deposit change if they felt so moved) and have a tidy sum to donate to Japan Red Cross.

So what does 1000 cranes look like when amassed?

I will organise to give these away – hopefully students will think about things when/if they take one.

Why?

I must say that when I visited the Hiroshima memorial site in 2003 the place upset me for a bunch or reasons – primary school kids ran and giggled and filled in worksheets, collecting information on casualties, counting demolished buildings on scale models, being photographed beside the scale model of “little boy” the first bomb dropped and coloured in pictures of the shadow left by someone as they vaporised in a doorstep. I know I should have been heartened by the obvious celebration of life and love around me but it made me ashamed to be allied with a group that could do this or even contemplate it.

I realize the tragic significance of the atomic bomb… It is an awful responsibility which has come to us… We thank God that it has come to us, instead of to our enemies; and we pray that He may guide us to use it in His ways and for His purposes.
—President Harry S. Truman, August 9, 1945

217: A Little Crabby

| wonko

I have been a little crabby lately – not sure why:

Times are busy, change is inevitable and I am not sure I cope well with it at times (prolly less well when I am tired)

This is a lovely fold, based on a waterbomb base and teasing 8 legs from one set of flaps and claws from the others – very clever and not too difficult really (compared to others I am contemplating) – some neato pre-creasing makes most of the folds before you need them.

Sleep, chocolate and tea – perfect remedies for those times when you get a little crabby also.

214: A Great White Pointer

| wonko

Apparently it is “Shark Week” – yeah, I did not know either until I looked it up.

This ferrocious little beauty is a variation of the blue shark described by John Montroll and Robert lang in their book “Origami Sealife” and there is much to like about the basic form (not sure the picture does it justice).

Lovely gills, beady eyes and toothless jaw, strong fins, shaped tail and a slightly 3d body make this model look like it should swim well and eat big chompy bits out of everything as it does.

Quite happy with this as a first fold – learnt lots along the way

213: A Foal

| wonko

Now in Australia, to save confusion, horse breeders take August 1 as the birthdate of ALL horses:

I made a foal, a newly born horsey to mark the occasion, he even looks unsure on his legs, but I cannot help but wonder what horses feel about us missing their actual birthday to celebrate the communal one. I wonder how horsey party supply places cope with the demand for balloons, streamers and cake?

This is a variation of “The Old Kentucky Horse” by Raymond H M’Lain from Robert Harbin’s “More Origami” ad the original model has always struck me as a much younger horse that promised – neato for today tho – Happy Birthday Horseys!

212: Brill’s Dragon

| wonko

End of another month, thought I would wrestle with a dragon to celebrate and found David Brill’s interpretation of the theme:

I like this a lot, for a bunch of reasons – it has a lovely head and tail, well placed wings and when photographed flat (hey, another model suited to a card) it looks like the Welsh Flag.

Some fiddly flap rearrangement and some folding by eye (rather than to landmark) makes this model interesting, my guess is each time it is folded it’s posture is subtly different.

Tidy use of plain paper, I was concerned the media would let me down but it was fine, meaning the model is well designed in my opinion (models that demand tissue foil are less so). There is an accompanying figure (Saint George – you know,  “George and the dragon” fame) but it is a composite figure, so might hold off on him for the mo.

Folded from the aptly names “Brilliant Origami” by David Brill, I really like that book, and there are still LOTS of things in there for me to fold.

210: Hippogriff

| wonko

Being a fan of Harry Potter, I am glad I have finally seen the last part of the saga at the movies.

It is late, I am tired, this is my first fold for a Hippogriff – there is promise and I will try again with thinner paper as I think the model has a good basic shape:

Hectic day, you get that.

209 Elias’ Bull

| wonko

When I bought “Selected Works” by Neil Elias, I was delighted with teh collection of box pleating models from the founder of this technique

After watching masterchef tonight I thought “What a lot of bull” – judges and contestants sprouting such a lot of false sentimentality the model I decided to fold was really obvious (at least to me)

there is much to like about this model – it looks stroppy, like it is readt to charge – head down, horns to the front, nice. The hind quarters are also good except the back legs seem an odd proportion to the rest of the model. Knowing how hard it is to plan and design a mode however I will forgive Mr Elias.

Very happy with this as a first fold – I must explore more of Elias’ work, many amazing figures from an origamist before his time. Not a good sign that the wife could not pick what the animal was (I think it is relatively obvious – maybe that is just me)

207: Cat Ready For Dinner

| wonko

This delightful cat is a David Brill model worth folding – so much character and a smug expression on it’s face:

It is said that dogs are people pets and cats are place pets – this one certainly looks like it owns the place.

Busy afternoon – happy with this first fold, my subsequent attempts will be much more refined – duo colour paper has the head, feet and tummy a different colour to the body – nice.

205 Satoshi’s Splash!(swan)

| wonko

The idea behind this model is fascinating (and a little difficult to explain in a white only fold) – use half a sheet of paper to fold a landing bird and leave the other half unfolded to be the pond it is landing on:

Quite difficult to achieve using copy paper, the finished model if done with 2-colour paper has the water one colour and the bird the other – very neat.

This is the first model I have chosen to fold from the “Selected Works of Satoshi Kamiya” – not the easiest but an interesting one none the less. The thickness of the body made subtle shaping of the bird difficult (without accidentally creasing the pond area) but I am quite satisfied with this as a first fold of this model – I am now eager to get a large format bi-colour page and try it. I could imagine some nice serpentine crimps on the pond surface, or maybe come concentric ones based on where it has landed – there is paper enough to do that and it might look nice.

Surprisingly the page is essentially divided in half horizontally to make the pond/bird – I initially thought it would be easier to diagonally fold it (annoyingly my paper is diagonally creased because that is how I cut a square from copy paper which explains the extra crease on the pond surface) – since when has Satoshi chosen a simpler path tho.

I like the wings and can see much potential in shaping the bird with thinner paper