Folding Paper: The Infinite Possibilities of Origami

“To most, the real beauty of origami lies in its simplicity, allowing everyone to create their interpretation of the world in paper.”

– Vanessa Gould, director, Between the Folds

“In the beginning we didn’t know what would be possible, but then we tried to push the limits and eventually found that everything could be made.”

– Erik Demaine, artist, excerpt from Between the Folds

Folding Paper was a groundbreaking exhibition that explored the evolution of origami from craft to fine art, as well as its stunning modern-day applications in the fields of mathematics, engineering, design, and the global peace movement. Works by 45 master folders from around the world—from countries as diverse as Japan, the United States, Uruguay, and Russia—showcased the power and potential of contemporary origami. In these artists’ hands, paper is a medium for infinite creativity.

The exhibition’s four sections illustrated the transformation of origami into its current vehicle for artistic, scientific, and spiritual expression:

  1. The History of Origami
  2. Animals and Angels: Representations of Real and Imagined Realms
  3. Angles and Abstractions: Geometric Forms and Conceptual Constructions
  4. Inspirational Origami: Impact on Science, Industry, Fashion, and Beyond

The works ranged from lifelike and representational to mathematical and computer-generated to lyrical and abstract to social and political. The award-winning documentary film Between the Folds features 18 of the artists in the exhibition, and would correlate wonderfully with exhibition programming.

Folding Paper was developed by independent curator, author, and educator Meher McArthur, former curator of East Asian Art at Pacific Asia Museum in Pasadena, California. Dr. Robert J. Lang, Folding Paper artist and physicist, served as exhibition advisor, and he and McArthur co-authored the exhibition catalogue. Lang is recognized as one of the world’s leading masters of paper folding and as a pioneer of the marriage of origami with mathematics and science.

Purchase the 96-page exhibition catalogue here

IA&A developed Folding Paper for tour through a partnership with the Japanese American National Museum. The exhibition was generously supported by the E. Rhodes & Leona B. Carpenter Foundation.

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