Re: [Origami] The Aart of Paperfolding

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Most  of you know that my substack Life, Death and Paperfolding is written 
largely about aspects of paperfolding history. I don't post here every time a 
new blog post is released but just occasionally I like to let you know what's 
going on. Today I am delighted to tell you that Edwin Corrie has written a 
guest post (well, it's a digest of a longer post on his own blog) about the 
books and influence of Aart van Breda. If you would like to read it, you can 
find it here:

https://open.substack.com/pub/davidgrahammitchell/p/the-aart-of-paperfolding?r=341x4g_campaign=post_medium=web=true

Dave

Re: [Origami] The Workman's Hat

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Just thought some of you may be interested in my latest blog post 
https://davidgrahammitchell.substack.com/p/one-hat-to-fit-them-all

I had a great deal of help with this from Matthew Demarkos, who is an expert in 
all things connected to Lewis Carroll. He has posted a video on the on the You 
Tube site of the Lewis Carroll Society of North America about the same design, 
but largely giving different information,  which is well worth a watch. See 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tO3rj67Esco

Dave

Re: [Origami] Moving origami model

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Andrew Hans  wrote:

> I remember years ago there was a rather simple model that when folded and 
> laid down it would rise up as the paper relaxed.

In case no-one else has already mentioned it,  this design is by Seiryo 
Takegawa (or Takekawa) and, In English, is usually known as the Magic Tipper. I 
don't know what the original Japanese title was.

Details of some places it can be found are on Gilad's site at 
https://www.giladorigami.com/origami-database/Magic+tipper+Takekawa%2BSeiryo

Dave

[Origami] Toot, Toot! Life Death and Paperfolding

[David Mitchell via Origami]

There are two new posts to read on my Life, Death and paperfolding blog.

The first is about the little known traditional design I call the Magic Hat ... 
which is well worth knowing about.

See 
the-strange-case-of-the-magic-hat

The second is about my Two-Way Magic Hat - a development of the Magic Hat which 
is extra fun to play around with.

See 
the-two-way-magic-hat

Please subscribe! This blog is free and always will be.

Dave

[Origami] Toot Toot - I've started a blog

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Just as blogs are going out of fashion I've decided to start one ...

'Life, Death and Paperfolding' will be an occasional blog about, well, life 
death and paperfolding, but mostly paperfolding, concentrating largely, but not 
exclusively, on interesting aspects of paperfolding history.

There are four posts to read so far and here is the link to the first of them 
https://davidgrahammitchell.substack.com/p/life-death-and-paperfolding from 
which you can easily find the others.

I hope you will enjoy reading it. Please subscribe!

Thanks

Dave

Re: [Origami] Box-pleating

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Robert Lang  indited:

>The quoted description from Kenneway is, IMHO, not a very accurate description 
>of the methods used by Elias (and Hulme, let?s not forget) that we now call 
>box-pleating. But, if I recall correctly, even Elias didn?t call his 
>techniques ?box-pleating? ? I think he used the term ?box-folding?.

Thank you. I was hoping you would jump in on this!

Kenneway does say that the technique is 'Sometimes called 'box-folding'' though 
he does not say that Elias used this term.

I also confess that, through laziness, I did not quote Kenneway's full 
description of the technique, which goes beyond the collapse of a 
concentrically creased square into a multiply sunk waterbomb base.

Kenneway says two things of historical interest. First he says that 'some of 
the earliest models created by this method included R Rohm's series of 'flowers 
in a vase'' and later says 'the technique itself derives from the two versions 
of the 'Jack in-the-box' devised by F Rohm and N Elias in 1963'.

One version of Rohm's flower in a pot was mentioned, and pictured, in Vol 3: 
Issue 2 of the Origamian for Spring / Summer 1963. Another, called 'Star 
Flowers' was diagrammed in Sam Randlett's 'The Best of Origami', also published 
in that year. I'm not convinced that either of those are 'box-pleated' designs.

The diagrams for Mooser's Train, however, included in your ODS, are dated 1967. 
Do you know the date when this design was created rather than diagrammed? Was 
it fresh off the folding table at that time or had it been around for some 
years already? I can't find any mention of the design elsewhere in the 
literature at an early date.

There are plenty of images of pleated designs, and a waterbomb base, In 
'Trattato delle piegature', but I cannot see anything that looks, to me, like 
the 'Elias stretch'. On the other hand I'm not sure I know what the 'Elias 
stretch' is ...

I still think that it would probably be more accurate to say, as Kenneway does, 
that Elias made frequent use of/developed the technique rather than originated 
/pioneered it.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Box-pleating

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Under the subject 'Folding Legend and Joisel Award - Join our free event', Ilan 
Garibi wrote:

'Neal Elias can be considered the creator of the modern box-pleating technique'

I think this assertion is worth discussing. According to Eric Kenneway's 'ABC 
of Origami', BOS booklet 47, box-pleating is 'a creative folding technique 
pioneered by F Rohm and developed by N Elias'.

Kenneway explains that the crease pattern that results from 'box-pleating' is a 
'multiple water bomb base or preliminary base' ie a series of concentric 
waterbomb bases or preliminary folds set inside each other, which can then be 
collapsed to form the base that Elias and others used to create designs for 
human figures.

The question then arises as to whether 'the modern box-pleating technique' is 
something entirely different. On this definition Mooser's Train, for instance, 
would not be an example of 'box-pleating', although it is effectively made from 
a series of pleated boxes.

Thoughts, anyone?

Dave

Re: [Origami] Where does the comparison between origami and music come from?

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Gerardo wrote:

>There's a reference to folding and music in an essay by Tolstoy titled What is 
>Art? Wow! What does it mention in regard to both?

This needs some clarification:

In their article 'Leo Tolstoy and the Art of Origami' in British Origami 186 of 
October 1997, Misha Litvinov and Sergei Mamin quote, presumably in translation, 
from the first draft of Tolstoy's essay 'What is Art?' (Leo Tolstoy - The 
Complete Works, v.30, Moscow, 1951), 'This winter a lady of my acquaintance 
taught me how to make cockerels by folding and inverting paper in a certain 
way, so that when you pull them by their tails they flap their wings. This 
invention comes from Japan. Since then I have been in the habit of making these 
cockerels for children.' And 'The person who invented these cockerels must have 
been enchanted by his own discovery, and the joy is transferred to others. And 
that is why the making of a paper cockerel, strange as it may seem, is real 
art. I cannot refrain from observing that this was the only new work in the 
sphere of paper cockerels that I have encountered during the last sixty years. 
At the same time, the poems, novels and musical opuses that I have read during 
the same period run to hundreds, if not thousands. This is because cockerels do 
not matter, you might say, whereas poems and symphonies do. But I think the 
reason lies in the fact that it is much easier to write a poem, paint a 
picture, or compose a symphony than to invent a new cockerel.' 

Unfortunately these passages did not make it into the final published version 
of the essay. See https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64908/64908-h/64908-h.htm

As you can see Tolstoy does not make any comparison between the process of 
folding and that of playing music.

The statement that 'These cockerels come from Japan' is dubious and probably 
ultimately derives from the 1885 article in La Nature. 

If you want more info about Tolstoy's cockerels you can find it in the entry 
for 1888 at https://www.origamiheaven.com/historyoftheflappingbird.htm. 

Dave

Re: [Origami] The Sosaku Origami Group '67

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Lorenzo lorenzo.luci...@gmail.com wrote:

>The author of this book is a "Creative Origami Group '67".
>Do you know anything about this Group?

There is a page on my site about this group at David Mitchell's Origami Heaven 
- History - The Sosaku Origami Group 
'67 which 
contains further information to that given by David Lister in the article 
previously referred to.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Name of the puzzle purse in Spanish?

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Karen Reeds  wrote:

>You set us all a good example by carefully documenting the names/creators of 
>models as much as you can, but I have to agree with Dave's pessimistic 
>conclusion.

Pessimistic? Realistic, surely ...

It's perhaps worth pointing out that in The Public Paperfolding Project I have, 
of necessity, given every 'traditional' design (or at least every 'traditional' 
design that occurs several times in the literature) a standard name (or 
sometimes two standard names if it is, for instance, 'traditional'  in both 
Japan and Western Europe / The Americas). Of course, I chose these standard 
names myself, mostly in English but sometimes in other languages, but I hope 
that having a standard name for each design will make referring to them and 
talking about them easier.

Dave

[Origami] Name of the puzzle purse in Spanish?

[David Mitchell via Origami]

gera...@neorigami.com wrote:

>I must confess I linked David's webpage but had not read it... oops

Bad boy!

I think we must also be careful not to believe that' traditional' designs 
necessarily had a 'traditional' name.

'La bolsa', for instance, is a title (in Spanish) that only appears once (as 
far as we know) for a design that only appears once in a Spanish book (as far 
as we know, prior to 1970).

Many 'traditional' designs have multiple names in the literature, multiple 
names, that is, in the same language, not just in different languages.

So deciding what a design should properly be called is difficult, if not 
impossible ...

Dave

Re: [Origami] Origami6

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Someone has kindly helped me with this now!

Many thanks

Dave

-Original Message-
From: David Mitchell 
Sent: Tuesday, May 16, 2023 9:28 AM
To: origami@lists.digitalorigami.com
Subject: RE: Origami6

If anyone possesses a copy of Origami6 and would be willing to help me access 
some information from it regarding paperfolding history I would be extremely 
grateful.

Please respond privately.

Thanks.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Origami6

[David Mitchell via Origami]

If anyone possesses a copy of Origami6 and would be willing to help me access 
some information from it regarding paperfolding history I would be extremely 
grateful.

Please respond privately.

Thanks.

Dave

Re: [Origami] 'Modular origami article for Wikipedia'

[David Mitchell via Origami]

 assembled from six modules folded 
from squares. A good example of a design that relies on mutual compression to 
hold it together.

Minako Ishibashi's 'Brocade' - a design made from six variations of the Fuse 
version of the Sonobe module that appears to be surrounded by ribbons of paper. 

Nick Robinson's 'Rhombic Dodecahedron' - a flat faced rhombic dodecahedron 
assembled from twelve modules folded from silver rectangles. The module is a 
development of the Sonobe module achieved by changing the folding geometry.

Hiroshi Kumasaka's 'Joyful Units' (aka the Rotunda) - a rotating ring made from 
eight simple units folded from squares.

Hachiro Kamata's 'Star Decorative Ball' - a ball decorated with raised stars 
assembled from 30 modules folded from squares.

David Mitchell's 'Electra' and 'Electra60' - modular sculptures made from 
thirty and sixty identical modules respectively.

David Mitchell's '6-part Stellated Rhombic Dodecahedron' - a flat-faced 
stellated rhombic dodecahedron assembled from six modules folded from silver 
rectangles.

David Brill's '12-part Enigma Cube' - reworking using twelve identical curved 
modules of a 2-part design by David Mitchell.

Tom Hull's 'Five Intersecting Tetrahedra' - a compound design made by 
interweaving five open-frame tetrahedra. Each tetrahedra is assembled from four 
modules folded from 3x1 rectangles. The open-frame tetrahedron design was 
independently discovered by both Tomoko Fuse and Francis Ow.

Books on modular origami
Not populated as yet.

Ends

Re: [Origami] 'Modular origami article for Wikipedia'

[David Mitchell via Origami]

So ... maybe the first thing to think about is what sections such an article 
should be divided into.

Here are my suggestions. Please offer yours ...

Definition: What is modular origami?

History: How did modular origami come to be?

Forms: What categories of designs can you make using the modular origami 
technique?

Assembly systems: What are the various ways in which modular origami designs 
hold together?

Surface Patterns: Using both sides of the paper to produce patterns on the 
surface of the design.

Some well-known designs: Brief details of a few classic modular origami designs.

References: Seems essential on Wikipedia.

Do you agree with these? Are there any important aspects of modular origami I 
have forgotten?

Dave

Re: [Origami] Common paper for friction-based modulars?

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Laura R  wrote:

>I?ll be happy to help editing that Wiki entry. I contribute that way with Wiki 
>from time to time fixing what my scatologic husband calls Wiki text poop. As 
>I?m not a modular expert and my English is not perfect, I will need the text 
>to replace that part. You can communicate with me as usual.

Yes, indeed. However, I think there must be lots of people on this list who 
regularly fold or create modular origami designs ... and perhaps it would be 
good to have everyone's input into what such a page should say?

I'm willing to start and maintain the discussion ... and eventually produce a 
draft. If you are putting it on Wikipedia I guess you have the final editorial 
say as to what you upload. (Then lots of people who are less expert than all of 
us can edit it to bits. But that's how Wikipedia works ...)

With that in mind I'm going to rename this part of the discussion as 'Modular 
origami article for Wikipedia'

Dave

Re: [Origami] Common paper for friction-based modulars?

[David Mitchell via Origami]

"gera...@neorigami.com"  wrote:
 
>Most boxes and lids also benefit from friction

Ah, yes, some modular designs may indeed 'benefit from friction' (and I agree 
that the Butterfly Ball is a good example of this) but this does not 
necessarily make them 'friction-based'.

The distinction is important, I think. The Wikipedia article on Modular Origami 
says 'When modules are put together, most are supported only by the friction of 
paper' which is entirely untrue. See 
https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modular_origami. Actually this is possibly a 
candidate for the most inaccurate article on Wikipedia ... 

(If anyone who is good at editing Wikipedia articles would like to work with me 
on writing something better please get in touch!)

>Now, I wish to remind everyone my question: What popular paper in the origami 
>community is good for models that benefit from friction?

Unfortunately I have no idea. I always make designs that need the benefit of 
extra stability from ordinary photocopy paper. It seems to work a treat ...

Dave

Re: [Origami] Common paper for friction-based modulars?

[David Mitchell via Origami]

"gera...@neorigami.com"  wrote:

>In his answer, Dave Mitchell asked me to explain what I mean with 
>"friction-based modulars".
>Maybe there's another name for that, but I'm referring to modulars which units 
>stay together thanks to the friction generated between them.

I asked because it's not a category of modular designs with which I am familiar.

I can only think of one three-dimensional design ... Paul Jackson's Cube ... 
which stays together because of friction. The others I can think of all seem to 
stay together because bits of them are bent at angles around other bits, either 
inside pockets or outside other layers. I suppose you could consider that a tab 
might not slide out of a pocket because of friction but it seems to me that is 
secondary to the more mechanical element of the design.

Some two-dimensional designs ... which I am much less expert at ... may fall in 
your category, perhaps. I am thinking of things like my 5-part Pentagram in 
which the modules are pushed together in the centre and hold because they all 
wedge up against each other.

Is that what you were thinking of?

Dave

Re: [Origami] Common paper for friction-based modulars?

[David Mitchell via Origami]

gerardo(a)neorigami.com asked:

>What very common paper in? the origami community do you recommend for 
>friction-based modulars?

Can you explain what a friction-based modular is?

Dave

Re: [Origami] . Peter Engel & Xiaoxian Huang, online guest speakers at Museo del Origami

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Hi Laura

This sounds exciting.

You didn't say what language these lectures are in ...

Dave

Re: [Origami] early Victorian-era "kirigami" -- LADY CULLUM?S PUZZLE HEARTS

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Karen Reeds wrote:

> I spotted these lovely examples of cut-paper Woven Hearts  in an antiquarian 
> bookdealer's announcement:
>https://www.pickering-chatto.com/PC/Images/Puzzle_Hearts.jpg

Hi Karen

A date of 1830 seems a little early for these hearts. The one on the lower 
left, commonly known as the Woven Heart, is said to be a discovery of Hans 
Christian Andersen. What is said to be the earliest surviving example is 
preserved in the Hans Christian Andersen Museum in Odense, Denmark. See, for 
instance, http://hjemmesider.diku.dk/~torbenm/hearts.pdf. I have not been able 
to verify this information.

The one on the right is an example of what I call Cut and Fold Chevron Designs 
- see https://www.origamiheaven.com/historyofthechevrontrellisandcross.htm - 
and the earliest evidence I otherwise have of this type of design is from 1863.

If the date is genuine it clearly takes the origin of these designs back a few 
decades. However the evidence of the photo, which appears to only shows part of 
the writing on the envelope, seems inconclusive. Presumably the bio you quote 
came from a catalogue? If so I wonder f you could please share the link to that?

Dave

Re: [Origami] Help with translating the titles of some traditional Japanese designs

[David Mitchell via Origami]

As most of you will know, with a lot of help from a lot of friends, I am 
attempting to collect and make available on-line as many sources bearing on the 
history of paperfolding as I can. This information is then being made publicly 
available as part of the Public Paperfolding History Project which you can find 
on my website at https://www.origamiheaven.com/historyindex.htm.


I have recently managed to locate quite a few early Japanese kindergarten text 
books online in the National Diet Library and it would be helpful to know what 
they say. I normally rely on Google Lens, which is pretty good (I think!) at 
translating kanji, but doesn't seem to be able to cope with the other Japanese 
alphabets. As a result, while I can read the main text of these books I can't 
read the names of the designs, which seem to be written in what I think is 
hiragana. It would be really useful to know what these designs are properly 
called!

So ... this is an appeal for help! If you are interested in paperfolding 
history ... are reasonably fluent in Japanese ... can read hiragana ... and 
have a little time to spare to help, I would love to hear from you ... 
privately, of course!

Dave

Re: [Origami] Sam Randlett

[David Mitchell via Origami]

I am wondering if Sam Randlett is still alive ... and if he, is whether anyone 
is still in communication with him or knows how he could be reached.

I haven't heard of his death, so very much hope he is still with us!

Dave

Re: [Origami] 1935 book Origami moyo? / by Kawarasaki Kodo cho --

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Karen Reeds  wrote:

>Here's a visual treat: a digitized copy of a beautiful accordion-fold origami 
>book from 1935, now in the Tress Collection, University of Pennsylvania 
>Libraries, Philadelphia. The curator, Lynne Farrington, tells me that only a 
>small part of the collection has been fully catalogued and even less digitized 
>so far, so there may well be more origami.

It would be great to see more of the Tress collection digitised.

Digital copies of both Origami Moyo volumes ... in a larger format ...  are 
however already available in the Pulverer Collection ... see 
https://pulverer.si.edu/node/787/title?f%5B0%5D=dateNormalized%3A1935

(Incidentally I have looked through the entire Pulverer collection and taken 
copies of all the prints relating to origami, of which there are many. Not all 
of these are yet integrated into the pages on my site, however.)

>For much more about Origami moyo?, Books One and Two, see David Mitchell's 
>invaluable posts at Origami Heaven:
 http://www.origamiheaven.com/historyorigamimoyobookone.htm
https://www.origamiheaven.com/historyorigamimoyobooktwo.htm

Hmmm ... yes. I have recorded what I know, or can find out, about Origami Moyo 
... but the pages still need a lot of work. If anyone can help identify the 
designs, or anyone who speaks Japanese can help me add further information 
about the page titles, that would be great. 

Incidentally, Origami Moyo was known to Gershon Legman in 1952 and was included 
in his bibliography.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Jack J Skillman

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Matthew Green  wrote:

>Ancestry has records for the death of a war veteran named Jack James Skillman 
>who was born on May 30, 1915, and died on December 12, 1977. That matches your 
>info. 

Thank you. Several people drew this to my attention ... and with that date of 
death I was able to find his brief obituary in The Origamian Vol 13 Issue 4 
(which confirms the date and therefore that we have the same person here).

If you are interested, you can find my updated page at 
https://www.origamiheaven.com/historyjackjskillman.htm

This is still surprisingly little information to have about such an important 
and influential paperfolder ... 

Dave

Re: [Origami] Jack J Skillman

[David Mitchell via Origami]

I am trying to improve my page about the paperfolding of Jack J Skillman 
(https://www.origamiheaven.com/historyjackjskillman.htm) and in particular to 
find out if anyone knows where and when he died (he was born in 1915 so would 
now by 107 if he were still alive) and whether, and if so where, any obituary 
for him was published.

Any help you can give me will be much appreciated.

Thanks

David Mitchell

Re: [Origami] Locust in Kan-no-mado?

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Gerardo wrote:

>Now I'm wondering if Kasahara named the model "cicada" in Japanese, but was 
>translated to "locust" in the English-language Creative Origami. Would there 
>be a way to know? Do any of you know of Japanese diagrams for Kasahara's 
>model? Was Creative Origami originally in Japanese or is the English-language 
>version the original one?

As far as I know Creative Origami was never published in Japanese. 

It seems, like many of Isao Honda's works, to have been a book written 
primarily for the USA market. 

Kasahara speaks good English so it is possible that he wrote the English 
himself. I suppose the only way to know would be to ask him directly.

Japan Publications Trading Co Ltd is an interesting company about whom I would 
like to know more, particularly in regard to their relationship to the Japanese 
government, specifically the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As you know the MOFA 
arranged / sponsored many of Yoshizawa's trips abroad and I suspect they may 
also have encouraged publication of English language origami books as a way of 
promoting Japanese culture in the West (ie as political / cultural propaganda). 
Hmmm ... I can't prove this. I simply suspect it!

Dave

[Origami] Locust in Kan-no-mado?

[David Mitchell via Origami]

Gerardo asked:

>I read in Creative Origami by Kunihiko Kasahara, that his model Locust was 
>based on the locust in Kan-no-mado. Now, if I'm not wrong, its pages only have 
>traditional models. But I had never heard of a traditional origami >locust 
>before. Kasahara's model is somewhat similar to the traditional cicada 
>instead. Do any of you know if Mr. Kasahara is calling "locust" to the 
>traditional model many of us know as "cicada"? Is the cicada model often >also 
>acknowledged as a locust? Or are they two different traditional models?

I'm sure that Kasahara was referring to the cicada from the Kan no mado, but 
just using a different name. As far as I know we call it the Cicada because 
that was the name used in Julia and Martin Brossman's 'A Japanese Paperfolding 
Classic' which translated the Starr copy of the Kan no mado ms into English. I 
don't know whether the original Japanese name can bear both translations.

More instances of similar designs can be found on my page 
historyofthekabutobasecicada.htm.

Incidentally, I call it the Kabuto Base Cicada simply to distinguish it from 
another traditional Japanese cicada design historyofthecrossovercicada.htm

Dave

Re: [Origami] Origami Digest, Vol 194, Issue 7

[David Mitchell]

mailto:foldden...@gmail.com>> wrote:



>Just wondering - what would you say the earliest model dealing with fantasy or 
>science fiction would be? My oldest books go back to the 1960s. Were there 
>dragon models before then? Fairies? Rockets?



This is a rather broad question, and not one I have studied. However, here are 
some thoughts:


A very simple design from a windmill base called 'Drachen' (The Dragon) appears 
in 'Die Frobelschen Beschaftigungen: Das Falten' by Marie Muller-Wunderlich, 
which was published in 1900. See entry for 1900 in 
https://www.origamiheaven.com/historyofthesquid.htm This is probably the 
earliest design in the Western tradition with the kind of name you are looking 
for.

As far as the Japanese tradition is concerned the question is more difficult, 
since there are quite a few early designs which may, or may not, represent 
mythical creatures etc. So for instance in  Kindergarten 
Shoho, published in 
1885, there are several strange creatures with an unusual number of limbs or 
heads, that might be mythical creatures. Unfortunately my Japanese is not good 
enough to tell.

More clearly, the first illustration in Origami Moyo, from 1935, 
https://www.origamiheaven.com/historykindergartenshoho.htm, contains a drawing 
of Minogame, a mythical ancient turtle which trails seaweed behind it.

Then coming further up to date you will recall that Yoshizawa published an 
article in Asahi Graf in January 1952, containing twelve designs for the 
figures of the Japanese zodiac, which would have included a dragon and possible 
other mythic beasts.

As far as I know space vehicles, of various types, first appeared in  'Paper 
Magic' by Robert Harbin, which was published in 1956. 
https://www.origamiheaven.com/historyofpaperspacevehicles.htm There may be 
earlier instances.

Hope this helps!

Dave

Re: [Origami] Origami Digest, Vol 192, Issue 11

[David Mitchell]

Thanks to everyone who responded to this message.

I now have an offer to scan the English article for me ... and ... somewhat 
amazingly ... someone else has sent me a scan of the original article from the 
Hawaii Beacon.

Origami people are amazing ...

Dave

Re: [Origami] Article about Yoshizawa in Reader's Digest magazine in 1970.

[David Mitchell]

In August 1970 the English version of Reader's Digest magazine published an 
article about Akira Yoshizawa which had been sourced from Beacon Magazine of 
Hawaii. This previously obscure article was then reprinted in other versions of 
Reader's Digest in other languages, possibly as many as 11, unexpectedly giving 
Yoshizawa a huge amount of exposure all around the world. From little acorns ...

So far I have managed to obtain a copy of the French and Spanish versions (from 
Juan Gimeno) and the Italian version (from Laura Rosenberg). My grateful thanks 
to both of them.

I haven't, however, managed to find the English version or a copy of the 
original article in Beacon Magazine

If by any strange chance you happen to have a copy of either of these in some 
dusty file ... or if you have a copy of the same article in any other language 
... I would love to hear from you!

I would also love to know if anyone remembers reading the original articles at 
the time.

You can read the French, Spanish and Italian versions at 
https://www.origamiheaven.com/historyreadersdigest1970.htm

Thanks for your help

Dave

Re: [Origami] Het Grote Vouwboek by Aart Van Breda, 1955

[David Mitchell]

Joan Sallas wrote:

>in the Padore Archive we have a sample of the 1st Dutch edition

That's wonderful! 

Thank you for this very comprehensive reply.

If I have any further queries (unlikely!) I will send them to you privately off 
list.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Het Grote Vouwboek by Aart Van Breda, 1955

[David Mitchell]

I'm just wondering if anyone has a copy of the first edition of this book 
(which I believe was published in 1955)?

The reason for asking is that I am trying to work out how it differs from the 
1963 second edition. Google Books says the first edition has 96 pages, whereas 
the 1963 second edition has 127 ... so it was either completely reformatted or 
contains additional material.

Can anyone help, please?

Thanks

Dave

Re: [Origami] finding an explanation for not liking golden ventures

[David Mitchell]

A good topic!

I have friends who like Golden Venture origami, or as they call it 3D Origami. 
Mostly they also seem to like other paperfolding techniques such as book 
folding or quilling which are also not mainstream in the 'origami community'.

None of these have any attraction for me, but then, I don't much like 
tessellations or corrugations either. Nor do I much like complex designs 
(though I appreciate how clever they are, and the skill that goes into folding 
them).

I suppose that what we are attracted to fold is a matter of personal taste and 
it would surely be better if we accommodated all styles of paperfolding within 
our understanding of what origami is and all paperfolders within our societies.

Dave

Re: [Origami] The Old Masters Project - looking for help

[David Mitchell]

Ilan Garibi As sad as it is, no one lives forever, and I am worried that once an origami 
>creator is no longer with us, his legacy will fade away as well.
To prevent that, I am trying to establish a page dedicated to the old masters 
of origami on the Community for Creators' (CfC) internet site. The core idea is 
to have a page on each of the great names that will include the story of his 
life, images of him and his work, a list of books he published, and, granted 
permission, some diagrams of his, so visitors can fold his models, and not only 
read about him.

I am always delighted to hear of any new initiatives to help record parts of 
paperfolding history!

I don't know if you are aware of the Public Paperfolding History Project, which 
you can find on my site at https://www.origamiheaven.com/historyindex.htm. This 
project, which I edit, but to which many other people who are also interested 
in paperfolding history contribute, concentrates on the history of types of 
designs, and of individual designs, and I am aware that it is weak on the 
history of designers. Everything (I hope) that you will find in the pages there 
is based on verifiable sources, and the pages tell you what those sources are, 
so that anyone who cares to, can check that the information is true. 

I would love to see a project that concentrated on designers ... particularly 
since I don't have the time to fully pick this up myself!

I do already have some pages on individual designers (and authors) and there 
will be more. There is, for instance, a page about Miguel de Unamuno 
(https://www.origamiheaven.com/historyunamuno.htm) which I think illustrates 
the difficulties of the designer based approach perfectly. Most of the 
information on the page comes from documents provided to me by Juan Gimeno, who 
has made a special study of Don Miguel's paperfolding. Nevertheless, I have 
only been able to verify a relatively small number of the many designs that 
have been attributed to Don Miguel as being his.

I also have a page under construction about Akira Yoshizawa 
(https://www.origamiheaven.com/historyakirayoshizawa.htm). David Lister wrote 
extensively about him, yet seldom gave sources for his information. All his 
information may be absolutely correct, but it is difficult to show that this is 
the case.

So the project you propose will not be straightforward, and, if it is to be 
done well, which I trust will be the case, will require a great deal of time 
and expertise.

>I already have a list of old masters, which for sure is not complete, but it 
>is a good start. For most I also have who holds their copyrights.

I am dubious about the 'old masters' title. Who is a 'master' (opinions will 
vary) and who is 'old'? Do you mean 'dead designers'? ... a sort of Dead Poets 
Society for paperfolders?

I will message you privately about the help that I may be able to offer.

Dave

Re: [Origami] History of Chinese Lucky Stars

[David Mitchell]

Thank you to everyone who replied to me about this ... both online and offline.

In following the various links I came to 
https://sites.google.com/site/ddmission05/home/chinese-lucky-stars which 
states, inter alia, 'From what I could find on the internet, the whole custom 
of making these lucky stars and giving them as gifts with meaning really took 
off after in a 1980s Chinese movie, a woman gave a man a jar of these folded 
stars as a blessing (3)'

(3) cites http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080512211307AADUvWM but 
I can't get to that answer.

Does anyone know anything about this film, what it was called, and where it can 
be viewed?

Thanks

Dave

Re: [Origami] History of Chinese Lucky Stars

[David Mitchell]

As most of you know I research and record information about the history of 
paperfolding.

I am wondering if anyone has any information about the history or origin of 
Chinese Lucky Stars?

I have not managed to find the design in any published books or even articles 
... though, of course, such publications may exist. If you know of any, please 
let me know.

The pentagonal knot from which these stars are developed is, of course, of some 
age. What I know about this design, in both Japan and Western Europe, is 
recorded on my page http://www.origamiheaven.com/historyofthepentagonalknot.htm

I would be very grateful for any new information that anyone can offer me.

Thanks

Dave

Re: [Origami] : Magazine cover box origins

[David Mitchell]

jens-helge.dah...@gmx.de wrote:

>From 1927 up to 1998 35 editions of 'Das Lustiges Papierfaltbuechlein' by 
>Johanna Huber appeared. The first 1. edition from 1927 has 56 pages. In the 
>years of world war II the editions were reduced to 39 pages. In the first 
>years after the war the editions were reduced, too - again to 39 pages. The 
>11. edition in 1960 and the following 6 editions were enhanced to 72 pages. 
>May be that is the point when the cover box came into the book. However, there 
>is a further possibility for this because in 1980 there was a great change: 
>Johanna Huber got a co-author - Christel Claudius - and the new edition became 
>the first one with 124 pages. This edition was the base for the English 
>translation.

Thanks for this.

>Presently I am on holiday with my MacBookPro including the origami 
>bibliography list, but without my origami library. In two or three weeks I 
>will look into my origami books. Then I will get back to you asap.

I look forward to hearing from you. 

Meanwhile Michel Grand has found the relevant page from the 1904 edition of  
'Handbüchlein der Papierfaltekunst' on a booksellers site and I have added it 
to my page about the magazine cover box along with another publication from 
1926 from France that Michel also knew about.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Now Novelty Purse

[David Mitchell]

Hans  wrote:

>>The book declares it has "20 two-color classic ORIGAMI diagrams, 11 Origami 
>>patterns, folded crepe paper, and full directions for making NOSHI, plus an 
>>actual sample".

>I would read this as if the design number 17 (which is two-color and has a 
>number less than 20) is classic origami for sure, at least in Honda's opinion.

This isn't in my copy of the book ... although I am missing the cover!

However, the word 'classic' seems to be used here in relation to the diagrams 
not the designs.

I have also found the Novelty Purse design in Honda's 'The World of Origami', 
where it is simply called 'Flower Model'. Given this I doubt the idea that it 
represents a Tortoise-Shell. Tortoise shell designs are generally hexagonal and 
this one isn't. I suspect that Honda may have been casting around for enough 
interesting designs to pad out his book and thought 'Aha '

The design isn't in Origami Part One (though some of the other designs are) but 
may well have been in one of Honda's other earlier books. I don't have these 
earlier books, but if someone does, it would be interesting to know whether the 
Novelty Purse appears earlier or not. If it does then clearly the analysis may 
change.

All this, I think, shows why the designation 'traditional' has very little 
meaning! One has to immediately ask, 'Traditional in what sense?'

Dave

Re: [Origami] Now Novelty Purse

[David Mitchell]

Michel Grand has pointed out to me that diagrams are also in the book 'Noshi' 
by Isao Honda, published, I think in 1964, where he calls it a Tortoise-Shell 
(because it is kind of hexagonal in shape).

Honda says nothing about its origin.

I thought at first this settled the matter and that it was therefore not by 
Yoshizawa. Then I remembered the dreaded Honda / Yoshizawa controversy which, 
as far as I know, has never been successfully resolved.

Nothing is ever simple ...

Dave

Re: [Origami] Magazine cover box origins

[David Mitchell]

jens-helge.dah...@gmx.de wrote:

>The Magazine Cover Box did not appear in 'Das Lustiges Papierfaltbuechlein' by 
>Johanna Huber. Most of the issues of this book are in my hands. 

How curious! It's in the 'translation' see 
https://archive.org/details/easyfunpaperfold00hube/page/66/mode/2up

>But you found the folding instruction in "Handbuechlein der Papierfaltekunst." 
>by Joseph Sperl, published in 1904 on page 18 (or 1920 edition on the same 
>page).

Thank you for this. I'll try to look it up!

Dave

Re: [Origami] Now Novelty Purse

[David Mitchell]

Gerardo @neorigami.com wrote:

>For some unknown reason, I'm not able to download his picture, but I was able 
>to take a partial screenshot of it. I'm attaching it to this email.
>Hmmm... now that I look carefully, it seems to say "Akira Yoshijawa" wit a "j".

For some reason I can never access attachments that are sent to the list. 
(Maybe the moderators could give me some advice on this!)

However, Chila has kindly sent scans of the project page and title page to me 
off list.

The attribution to Akira Yoshijawa (sic) is not in the 1st Edition.

Someone has clearly added the attribution. But who? And why? (All we know about 
them at present is that they couldn't spell Yoshizawa.)

Does anyone know the story of this republication and who might have edited it?

I am also wondering if any other changes were made.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Magazine cover box origins

[David Mitchell]

Philip Chapman-Bell  wrote:

> Also in James Sakoda's Modern Origami (1969) as How to Fold a Box. He cites 
> Marie Gilbert Martin's Weaver's Shuttle Box in her book, Pasteless 
> Construction with Paper (1951).

Thank you for these references. I will try to track them down and add them to 
my page.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Now Novelty Purse

[David Mitchell]

Gerardo  wrote:

>*Novelty Purse* created by Akira Yoshizawa (1911 - 2005), which diagrams are 
>included in *Secrets of Origami* (1971) by Robert Harbin, is hinted to be a 
>traditional tato with no reference to Mr. Yoshizawa in >*Complete Origami* 
>(1987) by Eric Kenneway

In Secrets of Origami (my version is from 1963) the Novelty Purse is said to be 
Origin: Japan. There is no mention of Yoshizawa-san.

The same design is indeed also published in 'Complete Origami', but, as you 
say, also without attribution.

It also doesn't appear in Origami Dokuhon 1.

I would love to see the evidence that it is a Yoshizawa design.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Magazine cover box origins

[David Mitchell]

Karen Reeds  wrote:

>Please do say more about evidence for the likely German origins of the 
>Magazine Cover Box. 

As far as I know diagrams for the Magazine Cover Box were first published in 
1978 in Vol 13 issue 4 of the Origamian. The diagrams include the information 
that 'Emily Rosenthal learned this in her German childhood - from whom she does 
not remember'.

The design probably first appeared in 'Das Lustiges Papierfaltbüchlein' by 
Johanna Huber, which was originally published in Germany in 1927.  I say 
'probably' because although the design can be found in the English translation, 
as 'Easy and Fun Paperfolding', published in the 1970s, I think, I have not 
seen a copy of the original book (and can't find one online). If anyone has an 
early copy of the original work and can check for me I will be truly grateful.

(Just to confuse things slightly, there is a photo in Issue 238 of the Buenos 
Aires edition of the magazine 'Caras y Caretas', published on 25th March 1905, 
which shows an open box of otherwise unknown design. It is just possible that 
this is the Magazine Cover Box, although the reproduction is too grainy to 
allow for certainty.)

>How can independent invention be ruled out!

It never can be. It's a bit like trying to prove a negative. All we can do is 
look at the positive evidence. And, as far as I know, there is no sufficiently 
early evidence of the existence of this design from Japan to substantiate the 
idea that it is originally a Japanese design.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Implications of the term 'Traditional' and call for

[David Mitchell]

Hans wrote:

>I believe the most extensive attempt at collecting "traditional models" is 
>that of David Petty: 
>http://britishorigami.info/academic/davidpetty//index.htm. For all I know, he 
>is right about that list

Dave's methodology in creating this list was to look through books and to 
include anything that the author had designated traditional. Clearly, if 
mistakes were made in the original work, then they are perpetuated in his list. 
As far as I know he did not attempt any verification of the information.

Most of the mistakes I have found relate to the geographical origin of the 
designs. The Magazine Cover Box, for instance, is designated as Japanese, 
although the evidence suggests that it is German in origin.

Dave (yes, another one)

Re: [Origami] Implications of the term 'Traditional' and call for feedback

[David Mitchell]

 wrote: 

>I think it would be extremely helpful and important to define the term 
>"Traditional" in a way that is accepted worldwide.  A personal note is that 
>the term traditional is a term I still do not have a clear understanding of 
>>its meaning and I am an active member of the OUSA community and have been 
>since 2006.  The Yoshizawa-Randlett system diagraming system is worldwide and 
>terminology should be too.  I was told it is not a legal >term, but people 
>seem to be using it for legal reasons.

 Yes, I agree, it would be very helpful! It would probably be even more helpful 
if people simply stopped using the term, but that is clearly unlikely to happen.

A tradition, I think, is something that people do by custom. So, for instance, 
if it was common in a society to usually fold a particular paperfold on a 
particular day of the year it would be reasonable to call that a traditional 
paperfold, ie a paperfold that is used in a traditional context. In the same 
sense Turkey could be called a traditional food because we eat it at Christmas 
(here in the UK) or at Thanksgiving (across the pond).

What I think, however, people mean by calling paperfolds traditional in origami 
is

1, I don't know who first designed it

or

2, I think it is old rather than modern

or both

which is a different kettle of fish entirely.

It would be much more helpful if people would simply say 'Designer unknown' and 
try to give some idea of the age or origin of the design.

For instance ... 'Designer unknown: modern'

or

'Designer unknown: Japanese pre-1900'

Of course, this requires some historical knowledge ... but there is now a 
resource on my site, an ever growing resource, though not yet a comprehensive 
one, where you can look these sorts of things up. See 
http://www.origamiheaven.com/historyindex.htm.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Idea for OUSA Convention competition

[David Mitchell]

Ken Fan  wrote:

>I am reminded of this video of Yang En-Tien (Yang Endian) - a Taiwanese 
>painter born without hands - teaching a young girl how to fold the paper crane 
>: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8t6L-HBtuCw
Boon

There is a famous print by Kunisada Utagawa of Hanakawa Kotsuru, a Japanese 
lady, also born without hands, folding a paper crane with her feet. See the 
entry for 1865 at http://www.origamiheaven.com/historykunisadautagawa.htm

Dave

[Origami] Modular Small Stellated Dodecahedron

[David Mitchell]

I have been looking at the various modules available to make this shape and I 
have found deep in my files a post from Jeannine Mosely dated July 11th 1994 
describing - and illustrated using ASCII diagrams! - her version.

In a note she states that the same module was independently discovered by 
Roberto Morassi and appears in 'a book by Fuse on international modular 
origami'.

I wonder if anyone can help me identify the title of this book and its 
publication date?

Thank you.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Hyperbolic Parabaloids

[David Mitchell]

gera...@neorigami.com wrote:

>I understand those are "Hyperbolic Paraboloids", created by Eric Demain. Is 
>that correct?

No, it isn't. There is a photo of one in the book 'Bauhaus: Weimar, Dessau, 
Berlin, Chicago' by Hans M. Wingler, MIT Press, 1969 and 1978, which shows a 
number of folded objects produced by students at the Bauhaus during the years 
1927/8. 

You can see the photo at http://www.origamiheaven.com/historyjosephalbers.htm

If anyone knows of an earlier instance I would love to know about it! Thank you.

Dave

Re: [Origami] The Making of Abd-El-Krim

[David Mitchell]

I recently came across a reference to an article about paperfolding in the 
February 1928 issue of Popular Mechanics magazine (in a post on the Didactics 
and Research of Folding site by Oschene).

The first design explained in this article is 'The Making of Abd-El-Krim', a 
design I have not seen before. Unfortunately I cannot reconstruct the folding 
method from the diagrams ... and I wondered if anyone else might like to have a 
look at it and see if they can achieve better success. It may be that the 
diagrams are wrong ... or that I just cannot interpret them correctly ...

If you are interested you can find the diagrams at 
www.origamiheaven.com/historypopularmechanicsfeb1928.htm

Please let me know how you get on and share any insights you have as to how 
this design might work.

Has anyone seen this design elsewhere?

Thanks

Dave

Re: [Origami] Did these models already existed?

[David Mitchell]

 wrote:

>Can you please tell me if this modular cube with corner pockets already 
>existed?
>https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/kfZUZ_C3cp7Pe43KRfPeYXF1VKgMvXfAxlkUWwIjFEKH62lk8C3plQ02gOF23CYYMakPNqYJTEefquIgu5wpUnJ2vSU0mXi5MKLUnmOcSgr4QkiB8pm1PchtM-fLeXiuedgmKtIZew=w2400
>It has six modules in total. I made it to insert for example Froebel folds, 
>just like this...
>https://media.giphy.com/media/fwVx9mqyrm4ns6tL0h/giphy.gif4

As far as I can recall I have not seen this exact design before but in both 
concept an design it is very similar to my Photo Frame Cube which you can see 
at www.origamiheaven.com/2018.htm where there is also a picture of the same 
cube with a Yakkosan added to each face. The proportions of the design can 
easily be varied to accommodate other types of inserts.

This version of the design only dates from 2018 ... when I finally realised how 
simple the modules could be! ... but it's an idea that has been in my mind 
since the early 1990's. All earlier versions were much more complicated ... and 
nowhere near as elegant ... so they won't be recorded here!

Take care

Dave
 

Re: [Origami] Jane Austen and Origami?

[David Mitchell]

Dawn Tucker  wrote:

>I came across this quotation in a book of (author) Jane Austen's letters ...

I hadn't heard of this letter before so I looked it up. I find it was written 
to her sister Cassandra on Monday 24th October 1808 and contains two references 
to paper ships: 

'We do not want amusement: bilbocatch, at which George is indefatigable; 
spillikins, paper ships, riddles, conundrums, and cards, with watching the flow 
and ebb of the river, and now and then a stroll out, keep us well employed;'

And

'While I write now, George is most industriously making and naming paper ships, 
at which he afterwards shoots with horse-chestnuts brought from Steventon on 
purpose;'

> ... from the early 1800s. Thoughts? I know it's possible, but is it likely??

The letter does not say the boats are folded ... but I think we may presume 
they are. If so there are two obvious possibilities for the design at this date 
... the Chinese Junk and the Paper Boat. 

Of the two, I suppose, it is most likely he is folding Paper Boats rather than 
Chinese Junks. 

(Incidentally, since Jane Austen says in the same latter 'George is almost a 
new acquaintance to me', it seems to me that he is unlikely to have been her 
brother?)

Since we know that folding paper boats (of some undefined kind but, again, 
probably Paper Boats) appears to have been almost an obsession with Percy 
Bysshe Shelley (1792 - 1822), who was a contemporary of Jane Austen (1775 - 
1817), it appears to that there is no difficulty in believing Jane Austen's 
account. See www.origamiheaven.com/historypercybyssheshelley.htm for more 
detail.

I will add this information to my page on Paper Boats 
(www.origamiheaven.com/historyofthepaperboat.htm) when I have time. 

I find there is another, earlier, possible reference to paperfolding in Jane 
Austen's letters. On Saturday 9th or Sunday 10th of January 1796 she wrote to 
Cassandra that:

'We have trimmed up and given away all the old paper hats of Mamma's 
manufacture; I hope you will not regret the loss of yours.' 

There may be more ...

Dave

[Origami] A8 not A6

[David Mitchell]

Kathy Stevick I would like to know about models that can be folded from A8.

What you can fold from A8 depends on the thickness of your paper ... Are you 
sure it's A8 ... that is really tiny!

I have a page on my site www.origamiheaven.com/silverrectangles.htm that shows 
some of the modular assemblies that can be made from this paper shape.

I notice that not all the information about where diagrams can be found is up 
to date, however. Diagrams for Stargate / Nexus and Elite and the Elite 
Hypercube can now be found at www.origamiheaven.com/modulardesignsindex.htm, 
for instance.

If you haven't folded it before I would definitely recommend trying Nick 
Robinson's Rhombic Dodecahedron. Shouldn't be too hard to find the diagrams for 
this.

Dave

Re: [Origami] From whom to obtain permissions for Sonobe Unit

[David Mitchell]

"J. Hacherl"  wrote:

>Understanding that you do not have his current contact info, did you ever need 
>to ask permissions from Mr. Sonobe in the past?

Yes ... a long time ago. His response was very positive.

>I'm not the copyright police

Nor I the copyright arbiter.

>I also notice that you mention other folders work on your site. Did you need 
>to get their permissions for mentioning them on your web page?

For mentioning, no. For posting diagrams, yes.

>Being specific, I sort of feel that since I hand drew my illustrations for my 
>Ninja Dice Game, is it good enough to credit Mr. Sonobe for being the creator 
>of the unit and cube, or do you think obtaining his permission is necessary?

I think the general consensus among origami folk is that whether it is 
necessary or not it is always good to seek permission. Apart from anything else 
it gives the creator of the design a nice warm glow when they realise other 
people are enjoying folding it. I certainly always appreciate being asked.

>As far as my submission is concerned, it could be possible to reference a 
>website for learning how to make and assemble the cubes and just submit the 
>rules for the game for the Convention Booklet.The deadline for submissions is 
>July 30.

Sounds good to me but you would probably be better to put this to the 
convention booklet editor ...

Dave

Re: [Origami] From whom to obtain permissions for Sonobe Unit and

[David Mitchell]

"J. Hacherl"  wrote:

>I understand that the Sonobe Unit and Cube was developed by Mitsunobu Sonobe, 
>Toshie Takahama, and possibly others?
I'm not sure who claims to have actually designed the unit or cube model, 
although it does carry Sonobe's name?

Yes, Mitsunobu Sonobe designed both the module and the 6-part cube made from it.

I don't have his contact details now, I'm afraid. 

Dave

Re: [Origami] . Paperfolding in Mad Magazine

[David Mitchell]

Thank you for your replies. I have added the information into the page.

I thought it might also be a good idea to put up some information about the 
extraordinary itinerant entertainer who was Giuseppe Baggi ... so I have! See 
http://www.origamiheaven.com/historygiuseppebaggi.htm if you are interested.

Corrections and further information always welcome!

Dave

[Origami] Paperfolding in Mad Magazine

[David Mitchell]

I have added a new page to the history section of my Origami Heaven website 
about paperfolding in Mad magazine in the 1960's - see 
http://www.origamiheaven.com/historymadmagazine.htm

The series of subscriptions adverts featuring origami by Giuseppi Baggi that 
ran from April 1967 to September 1968 are the earliest adverts I know of that 
use origami to promote something that is not paperfolding related.

I hope, however, that some of you may know of other earlier examples. If you 
do, please let me know.

I would also be interested to know if you can identify any of the designs as 
being by anyone other than Giuseppi Baggi. I think the peacocks may be by 
Yoshizawa, for instance?

Thanks for your help

Dave

Re: [Origami] Paperfolding History

[David Mitchell]

Over the past few months I have been building an online resource on my website 
that means I can 'easily' look up the history of individual designs and 
identify the sources they appear in. I did this primarily for my own interest 
... but if you are also interested in paperfolding history you may find it 
useful as well.

The resource can be found at www.origamiheaven.com/historyindex.htm

There is also a timeline at http://www.origamiheaven.com/timeline.htm

It is reasonably complete (ie the sources and the design pages are in synch) up 
to 1920. I will work on bringing it more up to date when I have time.

Most of the information is from the Western European / American traditions. 
Definitive information from the Japanese and other oriental traditions has been 
hard to come by.

There will be errors! If you find one please let me know.

There will also be omissions. I would particularly like to hear from you if you 
know of any major sources I have overlooked or if you have documentary evidence 
that any of the designs are older than my notes suggest. (Yes, I know they will 
be older ... but I am looking for the evidence that proves this is the case.)

Enjoy ...

David Mitchell

Re: [Origami] Posting publicly a variation of a figurative model?

[David Mitchell]

"Gerardo @neorigami.com"  wrote:

>A friend of mine proposed me to make a variation of Kunihiko Kasahara's "Lady 
>of Fashion". I accepted and have thought of two variations. I already have one 
>ready and I even took a picture. I'm still >working on the second one.

>One question: Is asking the original creator before publicly posting pictures 
>of variations the ethical thing to do? I would get it if the original creator, 
>Mr. Kasahara in this case, doesn't agree with the >variations and doesn't wish 
>for the models to be modified in such a way.

>From what I know of his approach to creative origami I am certain he will be 
>delighted. But, of course, it's always good to be in touch and tell him what 
>you are intending to do!

And just so easy now we have email ...

Not sure I have an up to date address ... but I don't imagine it would be 
difficult to find someone who has.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Albrecht Durer polyhedron in Melencolia I

[David Mitchell]

Scott Cramer wrote:

>According to http://mathworld.wolfram.com/DuerersSolid.html , the model is a  
>truncated triangular trapezohedron

I'm not convinced. I think it is a partially truncated cube but that the 
perspective of the drawing is imperfect. 

Melancholia I was after all engraved in 1514.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Swallow paper airplane?

[David Mitchell]

Gerardo @neorigami.com" asks: 

>Hi everyone.I know the following paper airplane from a long time ago:
>http://www.origami-instructions.com/swallow-paper-airplane.html

>1. The site calls it "swallow paper airplane". Do you know the model by any 
>other name? I want to look for other instructions for it and, if it does have 
>a different name, it would be very helpful to know.

>2. Is it a traditional model? If not, who created it?

Versions of this design appear in Murray and Rigney's 'Fun with Paper Folding', 
first published in 1928, and in  Margaret Campbell's' Paper Toy Making', first 
published in 1936.

If anyone knows of any older references I would be delighted to learn of them.

Dave

[Origami] FW: Tsutsumi from 1697

[David Mitchell]

As some of you may know I have a section on my website devoted to origami 
history (http://www.origamiheaven.com/historyindex.htm) which contains pages in 
which I try to gather together what is known about certain topics or designs. I 
do this for my own enlightenment ... but the results are there for you to look 
at if you wish.

At the moment I have been looking at the topic of tsutsumi or Japanese 
ceremonial wrappers. Normally I mostly track and regurgitate things that are 
already known ... but in this case I seem to have stumbled upon something that 
isn't recorded in the usual sources ... and so I share it here.

The Met in New York has in its collection a scrapbook album of tsutsumi, 
accession number 2013.248.1-.25, about which the Met says, 'According to the 
inscriptions, this set of models served as the initiation into the art of 
origata for Kikuchi Fujiwara no Takehide by an Ogasawara master, and is dated 
the third month of 1697.' 

This is a lot earlier than the 1764 'Hoketsuki' (wrapping and tying) by Ise 
Sadatake which is usually given as the first hard evidence for tsutsumi.

The link is 
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/78428?sortBy=Relevanceft=folded+paperoffset=40rpp=20pos=57
 if you are interested in having a look.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Variations on a classic

[David Mitchell]

Dawn Tucker wrote:

>I'm looking for inflatable variations on the water bomb model. I have the 
>rabbit, goldfish, stellated octahedron, chick, and snail with water bomb 
>shell. (Jeremy Shafer's heart model inflates, but has a different folding 
>sequence.) I know I've seen at least one other, but I can't remember what it 
>was. What else is just a little different from the water bomb, and is also 
>inflated to complete?

I have a simple Blow-up Long-eared Owl which I think fits your criteria. See 
http://www.origamiheaven.com/adaptations.htm

I can't recall if someone has already mentioned the traditional kettle (in 
which you can allegedly boil water on a candle).

Dave

Re: [Origami] Venus Butterfly?

[David Mitchell]

Anthromom wrote:

>How many of these off-color (!) books are there?

I hear there's an excellent book 'Rudegami' by some guy calling himself Oliver 
Zachary.

Is that one of those you found?

Dave

Re: [Origami] Origami Sighting - Lexus Comercial

[David Mitchell]

From: Robert Lang  indited:

>In 1509, Luca Pacioli and Leonardo da Vinci put together a book, "La Divina 
>Proportione," in which they introduced the concept of erecting a pyramid on 
>each face of a >polyhedron (which is what is effectively happening in a Sonobe 
>solid) and they called the operation "Elevation." So Sonobe solids would be 
>(according to that terminology) >"elevated polyhedra," and that's the term 
>I've used when describing modulars with that form. Here's a Bridges paper that 
>gives details:

There do seem to be lots of names for similar aspects of this process. So ... 
as a non-mathematician I venture intrepidly into mathematical territory ... 
happy to have my misconceptions and mistakes pointed out.

At least the following possibilities seem to exist:

Elevation

Accretion

Cumulation

Akisation (from the Conway operator kis)

Kleetope

Pyramidisation or pyramid-augmentation

There are also the triakis polyhedra which can be derived through this process, 
though they appear to be special instances, as are those stellated polyhedra 
which can also be derived in this way.

George Hart suggests that elevation is also a special instance, the addition of 
pyramids with equilateral faces, but I do not know if this is an authoritative 
view.

I am not clear what the process of forming a Kleetope is and whether it is a 
specific process or a general one.

Of the remaining general terms I tend strongly towards cumulation because it 
means, or can mean, 'forming into a pile' which seems to make sense in terms of 
the process. 

Negative cumulation? Surely not? Excavation, perhaps?

And then, of course, I have myself been using pimpled and dimpled for years!

Dave

[Origami] Why did origami become popular in the 1980s ?

[David Mitchell]

Wolf Weidner  said:


>I looked up origami, and found in various
> languages, that the rise of the term "origami" began in the 1980s [1]
> Does anyone have an idea why that is?

This seems a difficult question to answer. And very different from the question 
'Why did folding paper become much more popular in the 1980's?' if indeed it 
did!

I replaced 'origami' in your search with 'paper folding' and the graph 
flattened out ... so it may be that you have a point.

https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=paper+folding_start=1940_end=2008=15=3=_url=t1%3B%2Cpaper%20folding%3B%2Cc0

Dave

Re: [Origami] cuboctahedron from 2x1

[David Mitchell]

I wrote:

"This is Paul Jackson's Cuboctahedron. Originally folded from a square which
was cupboard folded to make a 2x1 rectangle, I believe."

Rona Gurkewitz  wrote:

>I discovered this model too when I was making models from cupboard door

folds, like my simple accordion book. Around 2000

Yes, I also discovered this for myself ... in around 1987. But since Paul
found it in the early 1970's I believe he has priority over both of us.

Dave

Re: [Origami] What's the name of this model and who's the creator?

[David Mitchell]

"Gerardo @neorigami.com"  wrote:

>Here's a
fold:https://scontent-mia3-2.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/24909648_1963815606967741
_4223276213998355150_n.jpg?oh=ccdad667a4fb7a03f7f12da38be6847b=5AD583D8

>It's way similar to Kenneth Kawamura's "Butterfly Ball" but it's folded
from six 2 x 1 rectangles. That makes it very sturdy, so it doesn't have the
effect Kawamura's model has.

>What's its name and who's the creator?

This is Paul Jackson's Cuboctahedron. Originally folded from a square which
was cupboard folded to make a 2x1 rectangle, I believe.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Butterfly Ball

[David Mitchell]

Diana Lee  wrote:

>I thought the Butterfly Ball was by Kenneth Kawamura

Yes, it is. His original diagrams were published in 1977 in his Meditations
on a Waterbomb.

In that ms the name is given as the Harlequin Ball.

If you are interested you can find the ms in full here
http://www.origamiheaven.com/historyindex.htm

Dave

Re: [Origami] On the subject of what constitutes origami

[David Mitchell]

Dawn Tucker  wrote:


>My question is this: Who decided (and when) that cutting and gluing keeps a
folded piece from being called origami?

As always it is helpful to look at what David Lister wrote on this subject.
See his article 'To glue or not to glue' in the Lister List ... which is
oddly entitle Glue and Origami in the index.

http://www.britishorigami.info/academic/lister/glue.php

There is also an article in the list on cutting:

http://www.britishorigami.info/academic/lister/cutting.php

I don't always agree with his opinions or conclusions ... but he provides
historical information on which an informed opinion can be founded.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Meditations on a Waterbomb

[David Mitchell]

I have added, with permission, the full text of Kenneth Kawamura's 1977
booklet Geometrical Compound Origami or Meditations on a Waterbomb to my
site at http://www.origamiheaven.com/historyindex.htm

This documents the modular discoveries of Kenneth and Joe Power during the
early 1970s.

The 6-piece skeletal octahedron had, of course, been discovered much earlier
on, in about 1965, by both Robert E Neale and Kunihiko Kasahara.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Origami Heaven updates

[David Mitchell]

Just to let you know that I have revised the Family Tree of Origami page on
my site which offers an analysis of origami into categories by the intention
of the designer, folder or performer. This revision was long overdue since I
wrote the original page in the late 1990s. You can find it at
http://www.origamiheaven.com/familytree.htm. Comments welcome.

I have also added a page about The Fifth Pig and other propaganda Fold-Ups
to the history section. http://www.origamiheaven.com/historyoffoldups.htm If
anyone has any more detailed information about these fold-ups, particularly
about their early origin I would love to hear it.

Thanks

Dave 

Re: [Origami] About Leo Tolstoy and the Flapping Bird

[David Mitchell]

Some information that was new to me ... and so may also be new to some of
you ...

As those of you who are interested in paperfolding history will know there
are several independent records of Leo Tolstoy folding 'paper cockerels'. 

One example is given by Misha Litvinov and Sergei Mamin in their article in
British Origami Magazine 186. In this incident, recorded by F D Polyenov in
his book 'At the Foothills of the Rainbow', Moscow, 1987, the writer, then
ten years old, happened to be travelling with his mother in the same railway
carriage as Leo Tolstoy. He records that 'He (Tolstoy) took a piece of paper
and began doing something to it. What came out was a bird which flapped its
wings when you pulled at its tail.'.

But were these paper cockerels the same traditional flapping birds we know
and love? I have always assumed so ... but my assumptions are often wrong.

Litvinov and Mamin also mention that several paper birds are carefully
preserved under glass in the museum devoted to the work of the painter
Vasily Polyenov (father of the ten year old boy mentioned above) near Tula
in Russia. It occurred to me that this was worth pursuing and I contacted
the museum to ask if the birds still exist.

They do. I have not seen the birds themselves but I have now seen a
photograph of them kindly supplied by the museum. There are four of them and
they are indeed Flapping Birds of the traditional kind, three quite well
folded and one that is less well folded and looks indeed as though it could
quite possibly be the work of a 10 year old boy who might never have folded
paper before. The larger of the three well-folded birds has handwriting on
which says, 'November 18, 1896. Made by L.N.Tolstoy in a train car going to
Moscow. Gift for Mother.'

I find it amazing that a flapping bird folded for a 10 year old boy on a
train in 1896 by Leo Tolstoy has survived in this way.

I wonder what other old paperfolds have survived in Europe? I know about the
Ross and Reiter in Nuremberg and Dresden but are there others I haven't
heard about?

Dave

Re: [Origami] Folding 1000 Cranes

[David Mitchell]

I have just been looking at what I can find out about the history of the
Tsuru ... lot's obviously! ... but I am left with a question which I hope
someone will be able to answer.

It is not clear to me when the now established tradition of folding 1000
cranes and/or stringing them together arose. Every avenue I follow up seems
to lead back to the story of Sadako Sasaki, who it appears did string cranes
together in this way, but I suspect that the tradition is much older than
that.

Does anyone know of any evidence to establish this, please?

Dave

Re: [Origami] Design contract available - URGENT!

[David Mitchell]

I am working on a book for a UK packager and need some help from someone who
is good at designing simple basic figures of cartoon-like characters. The
characters will be folded from printed templates so that all that is
required is that the basic shape of the character ... face, body, ears, feet
etc be in place and that the proportions are reasonably correct. All the
visible areas must come from the same surface of the paper. The use of
multiple sheets and carefully selected cuts is acceptable to the publisher
... though I would like to keep the use of cuts to a minimum. The book is
aimed at children so the designs must be simple and easily folded.

This is a commercial contract and you will be paid for your work. However,
it is ultra-urgent so you must be available to begin immediately.

Please contact me off-list if you are interested. 

Dave

Re: [Origami] New modular cubes?

[David Mitchell]

Sy Chen wrote:

>My friend, Jim Weir and I recently tossed around the idea of teaching
simple modular design for a local event. We came up with a few simple ideas
for cubes. Some of them >are very simple. Do you know if someone else had
created it before?

No 1 looks familiar but I think only because I have played with the idea
myself. It works better if the three modules all have three faces and the
tabs rather than just two.

Haven't seen the others. No 4 looks interesting.

Many other modular cubes for comparison at
http://www.origamiheaven.com/cubes.htm

Dave

Re: [Origami] Updates to Origami Heaven

[David Mitchell]

Just to let you know that I have added diagrams and solution diagrams for
another new folding puzzle - 5 in a Row - which is a development of Robert E
Neale's 3 in a Row at http://www.origamiheaven.com/puzzles.htm

I have also added two new history pages - about Troublewit and the parlour
game of Consequences and its surrealist development Le Cadavre Exquis at
http://www.origamiheaven.com/origamiunfolded.htm

As always I would appreciate hearing any further information you have on
these two subjects.

Thanks

Dave

Re: [Origami] History of the Chinese Junk

[David Mitchell]

I have added a page to my site gathering together all the information I can
find about the history of the Chinese Junk
http://www.origamiheaven.com/historyofchinesejunk.htm

If you know of any other early publications of, or references to this
design, or can add more substance to any of the references I have given ,
particularly those in French, I would love to hear about them.

Thanks

Dave

[Origami] Is this a variation?

[David Mitchell]

Gerardo wrote:

>what makes a variation precisely a variation?

I doubt there is any possibility of a precise answer.

However, I always like to make a distinction between a variation and a
development, a variation being a small change, such as opening a flap to
create a colour change, which does not change the fundamental
characteristics of the design, and a development being a larger change which
usually brings in a new design idea on top of what is already there.

Easy to say this ... much harder to back it up with actual examples.

But, for instance, if we think about modular origami and take Robert E
Neale's classic 6 waterbomb base octahedron we can see that it is, for
instance, possible to vary it by working a colour change on half the arms -
the ones that go outside the others. Equally it is possible to sink all the
corners ... and end up with Ed Sullivan's XYZ. These small sorts of changes
I would call variations.

If we change more aspects of the original design ... and forgive me but I am
now going to use my own designs as examples here ... because those are the
ones I know best ... we can bring out some of the arms into points and end
up with the Semi-Star ... or completely distort the form and end up with the
Enigma Cube. Equally we could use the design as a macromodule and end up
with the Octahedral Pyramid. I tend to regard all these as developments
rather than variations ... though I cannot draw a precise line at the point
where a variation ends and a development begins ... so that I guess it will
always be possible to debate whether a design is one of the other.

If you don't know the designs I am talking about see
http://www.origamiheaven.com/papercrystals.htm and
http://www.origamiheaven.com/macromodularorigami.htm

Dave

Re: [Origami] The history of paper planes

[David Mitchell]

For a long time I have wanted to put together a page of references on this
subject.

You can find my first effort at
http://www.origamiheaven.com/historyofpaperplanes.htm

I would be grateful to be pointed at any further definitive references or
for any clarifications folk may be able to offer.

Thanks

Dave

Re: [Origami] UNHCR video - origami in a Syrian refugee camp

[David Mitchell]

Came back from holiday to find a message from UNHCR with a link to this
video about origami in a Syrian refugee camp.

I don't recall it being shared before ... but apologies if it has!

http://www.unhcr.org/news/stories/2017/4/58ede8b54/origami-helps-syrian-refu
gee-shape-new-life-exile.html?


Dave

Re: [Origami] Another Bob Neale puzzle!

[David Mitchell]

Bob Neale has very kindly allowed me to draw diagrams for another of his
amazing transformation puzzles. This one is called Trading Places and you
can find diagrams for it at http://www.origamiheaven.com/puzzles.htm.

The puzzle dates back to the 1990s but has not been formally published
before. The solution is simple ... but may be difficult to find.

Diagrams for the solution will be released in a couple of weeks or so.

Meanwhile please try to solve it for yourself.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Robert Neale puzzle - Three in a Row

[David Mitchell]

Anne LaVin  wrote:

>...in the instructions you forgot to mention that the resulting flat strip
has one of each color *on both sides*! At least, my solution does. Not sure
if it's the only solution, maybe there are others?

This is true ... and true for all solutions ... but I didn't mention it as
it isn't integral to the challenge.

Glad you had fun solving it.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Robert Neale puzzle - Three in a Row

[David Mitchell]

It is not often you have the joy of revealing a never before published
design by Robert Neale ... but here's one. 

Diagrams for his Three in a Row puzzle can now be found at
http://www.origamiheaven.com/puzzles.htm. 

Diagrams for the solution will be released next week.

My grateful thanks to Bob for allowing me to do this.

Dave

PS If you want to know what else is new on my site have a look at
http://www.origamiheaven.com/new.htm. I try to add diagrams for one new
thing a week, although sometimes it's an old thing, if you see what I mean.

Re: [Origami] Flexagon based puzzles

[David Mitchell]

Just a quick toot to say that I am trying to add more diagrams for this type
of puzzle to my Puzzles page at http://www.origamiheaven.com/puzzles.htm

So far I have added diagrams for Robert E Neale's Sheep and Goats and my own
Night and Day (both derived from the same flexagon) and for my Purgatory
puzzle, in which the challenge is to pass a rather large object through the
centre of a flexagon-like mat.

If you have any ideas for other puzzles which should be featured here please
let me know.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Designer of "equilateral sonob?" with 1:sqrt(3)

[David Mitchell]

I have just added some quick diagrams for the basic forms of both the Abe
and Terada modules to my website (filed under A) at
http://www.origamiheaven.com/modulardesignsindex.htm, something I have been
meaning to do for a long time now.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Designer of "equilateral sonob?" with 1:sqrt(3)

[David Mitchell]

joseignacio.r...@ehu.eus asked:

>I want to know who is the author of a unit which I have known for years as
a "classic".

>It is a modular unit similar to Sonobe's unit, but with equilateral
triangles.
>The version I am asking about starts with a 1:sqrt(3) rectangle (bronze
rectangle).

It is difficult to tell from this information exactly which unit you are
talking about. There are several similar units that start from a 1:sqrt3 or
bronze rectangle that look essentially similar ... but I would not call any
of them Sonobe units.

A true 'equilateral Sonobe' or at least a true 'equilateral corner-pocket
Sonobe' can be made from a bronze rectangle by using the same method used to
make the Nick Robinson rhombic parallelogram module from a silver rectangle.

The module you are talking about is however probably the Abe module
(although it may just possibly be the Terada module. The Abe module is the
simplest of the two but both look the same when assembled.) Tomoko told me
about the Abe module many years ago but I have never diagrams for it in
print. I assume it is by Hisashi Abe, he of tri-section fame, but do not
have any evidence to support this. If so it is probably from the early
1980's.

If anyone has further information about this I would love to hear it. I have
been investigating what these modules will do for some years.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Origami used by psychologists and model

[David Mitchell]

Gerardo  asked:

>So what do you think? In an example like the one I explained would it be
unethical for the psychologist to use the model without asking Mr. Ecija?
>Would it not be? Please let me know your thoughts through the list or by
sending me a message to gerardo(a)neorigami.com

It's a bit like teachers using origami in lessons ... something we should
surely all encourage.

The psychologist is being paid to psychologise ... not to fold paper ... so
he/she is not making money from teaching a design. So I think it's fine.

Dave

[Origami] Studio update and Artist question

[David Mitchell]

Seth  wrote:

>Wiring and/or gluing, acid free paper etc. are definitely necessary for
long living origami works.

Can I offer you another perspective? Acid free paper is paper so folding it
is, of course, paperfolding.

However, supporting an origami structure with wires, especially concealed
wires, or glue, or coating it with varnish, changes the nature of what you
are doing. The question is whether you are still actually producing origami
sculptures or rather now working in some kind of multi-media? I would
certainly be very disappointed in a paperfolder who presented such a
sculpture without pointing out how it had been achieved.

I believe that paperfolding at its best - and at its most artistic - is just
paper and just folding. If you need to strengthen or support a structure in
another way then what you have done is to out-design the paper - gone beyond
what the qualities of paper, and the process of folding, allow you to do. 

If I reach this point with my designs I pull back and try to simplify and
work within the parameters of paperfolding ... and I would recommend this
approach to you. It is a highly rewarding one.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Studio update and Artist question

[David Mitchell]

"Robert J. Lang"  said:

>Another For some display artworks, I will glue wires inside the folds,
striving to tuck them far enough inside that they're not visible. The wire
then takes the strains of gravity that would have been borne by the paper,
and prevents long-term sagging. The glue also provides some structural
stiffening.

Surely this reply is a spoof?

Dave

Re: [Origami] Flat rectangular models with color change?

[David Mitchell]

"Gerardo @neorigami.com"  wrote:

>Thanks to David's message, I was able to find a wonderful article of his
authorship I had once read and enjoyed ver much! Design Styles
Overview: http://origamiheaven.com/designstylesoverview.htm

In the article David calls this style "pictorial origami" 

>I'm surprised he didn't mention that in his message.

Thank you for pointing this out. I wrote this page a long time ago ... and
had forgotten what I wrote then! Thank you for reminding me. I am not always
... or very frequently ... consistent, unfortunately.

Loved your tree design. I wonder if it could be simplified? (I always wonder
this about origami designs!) Or would that ruin it?

Dave

Re: [Origami] Flat rectangular models with color change?

[David Mitchell]

Hans  was kind enough to mention my book Origami
Alfresco in connection with this thread.

Although he is correct that

>Dave Mitchell calls it ... sketching without pen or ink

that idea came from the late Eric Kenneway who, I believe, called it
'drawing with paper' ... which is the term I would normally use.

It seems to me that there is quite a difference between this technique ...
creating recognisable (I hope!) pictures and the creation of bi-colour
patterns and I don't think they ought to be conflated.

I also don't think it matters whether the outline of a drawing with paper
design is rectangular or irregular. I think most of Eric's designs were the
latter. As Hans says many of mine are rectangular ... but that was because I
conceived of them as sketches drawn in an artists notebook. 

As always I think that the choice of a regular or irregular shape is one
that depends on simplicity and elegance. It would surely be foolish to ruin
a good design just to arrive at a rectangular outline?

For those who are interested I have a page on drawing with paper designs
here ... http://origamiheaven.com/drawingwithpaper.htm

Dave

Re: [Origami] The name of the Kawasaki Rose?

[David Mitchell]

Gerardo gera...@neorigami.com wrote:

I don't think that happens in such a way with many other models even if
they have generic names

We already have, for instance, Molly Kahn's Hexahedron, Paul Jackson's Cube,
Neale's Octahedron, Joisel's Rat and many more ... but I agree that it is
pretty random.

I do however think this is a really good practice. Attaching a designer's
name to their designs helps us remember 'who did what' and hopefully helps
to preserve their legacy.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Question: Which Came first?

[David Mitchell]

Joan Sallas sal...@gmx.net wrote:

Is not a though, but a documented evidence that 1721 children threw paper
trough the high windows in the school Paedagogium Regium in Halle/Saale
(Germany), where the foldig art was teached as recreation.

Yes, I understand. So it is possible (perhaps even likely) that these pieces
of paper were folded in some way. Though, if they were folded, we cannot
know in what way.

A nice though, but until today not documented, is for example that Leonardo
da Vinci created the first paper airplane, as many origami books explain.

Good to know this as well. Thank you.

My thanks to Robert for the David Lister information. Since this piece was
written the date at which we can first substantiate paper darts appears to
have been pushed back to 1864 but it still seems to me that we cannot
actually substantiate the idea that paper darts preceeded their wood and
cloth counterparts. 

Another question this raises in my mind is whether the earliest published
paper planes were classic darts (prefiguring the design of modern aircraft!)
or like the swallow design (more like their early wood and cloth
counterparts?)

Dave

Re: [Origami] Question: Which Came first?

[David Mitchell]

Joan Sallas sal...@gmx.net wrote:

The model Wurfpfeil (dart to throw) was published in Hermann Wagner's
Book Illustrirtes Spielbuch f?r Knaben (Leipzig: Otto Spamer, 1864. 
1st edition, page 283

Thank you. I take it this is the earliest publication that we know of ... in
Europe at least.

If so then it is unfortunately fairly late. Sir George Cayley, for instance,
had already flown gliders well before this date (if Wikipedia is to be
trusted!).

However, children discovered very early the lightness of the paper, and
frequently threw sheets of paper through windows of high buildings, as in
the children school Pedagogium Regium in Halle/Saale (Germany), where the
folding of paper and napkins was in the pedagogic program since 1705 (73
years before Froebel's birth!). I asume that children observed that a sheet
of paper folded as a dart, fly better and farther. 

Playing Devil's advocate I wonder whether this assumption can be evidenced?
Both unfolded sheets and paper balls might also be candidates here?

I'm interested because I recall a conversation with David Lister about this
subject in which he told me he could find no evidence that paper planes
pre-dated similar constructions of wood and cloth ... though it would, of
course, be nice to think they did!

Dave

Re: [Origami] Question: Which Came first?

[David Mitchell]

Joseph Wu qu...@origami.as said:

Paper airplanes were known as paper darts long before airplanes were
invented. 

Is it possible to post details of the evidence for this?

Thanks

Dave

[Origami] 3 unit triangular bipyramid

[David Mitchell]

Michila Caldera chilag...@gmail.com asked:

 Do you know what she called it back in 1967? I'd like to use that name
since it's the first reference I know of.

No specific name is given in the Origamian. It is just identified as a
hexahedron.

I feel we should call it Molly Kahn's Hexahedron ... which is already in use
... and keeps her name ... and for those who knew her (I didn't) her memory
... alive.

Dave

Re: [Origami] 3 unit triangular bipyramid

[David Mitchell]

Richard Kennedy wrote:

Tom Hull (in his book Project Origami, Activity 14, p. 139-151) states
that the creator is Molly Kahn, but doesn't appear to give a creation date,
or where diagrams first appeared.

Yes, this is Molly Kahn's Hexahedron.

It has been published many times ... among others in the BOS booklet about
Christmas Decorations by Paul Jackson from 1982 ... but I think the original
publication will be in one of the early Origami Center magazines ... (runs
upstairs to check) ... yes  ... it's in The Origamian vol 7 issue 4 of
Winter 1967 ... which has a profile of Molly and nine of her modular designs
... including this one.

Dave

Re: [Origami] Not origami, but an interesting use of paper

[David Mitchell]

Scott Cramer wrote:

A functional footbridge, made of paper. No folding necessary! 

http://www.thisiscolossal.com/2015/05/paperbridge-a-load-bearing-arch-of-pa
per-sheets-spans-an-english-creek/

I don't know if it's art, but I like it.

This was built very close to where I live in the English Lake District. It
was described in the local media as the origami bridge ... although I think
that it was made from single rather than folded sheets.

I also rather like it ... 

Dave