What with all the great paper stores in Taos, I have been making quite a few origami boxes. And people have been asking me to teach them. So today I gave an informal origami workshop at Mondo Kultur, my coffee shop of choice. Four of us appropriated the nice, big table in the corner, and we spent a couple of hours with one of my personal favorite designs, one of Tomoko Fuse’s modular square boxes. In the picture, that box design is the one on the left, orange and red, as well as all the boxes along the right side of the photo. The box with the eight-point star on top is a traditional Japanese masu box (elegantly simple and ingenious), and the hexagonal box at the rear is another of Tomoko Fuse’s modular designs:
I had three students: Toni, Tenney, and Deatria. All three produced excellent artworks. And this was a fine experience for me, too, because I began to learn to fold a box “up-side-down” so that I can sit across from my students, yet orient the paper so that it makes sense from their viewpoint. This is more difficult than you might imagine. Top and bottom, right and left get all mixed up.
If you want to learn to make some origami boxes like these, get Tomoko Fuse’s book Origami Boxes. Better yet, maybe you’ll consider joining me during the summer for a whole origami weekend at Water Gap Retreat, Michael Davis’s new “summer camp for adults” on the Shavers Fork near Elkins. WV. I’ll be telling you more about Water Gap Retreat soon. Stay tuned!
2011 UPDATE: In April 2011, I will be teaching a workshop, “Origami Containers,” at Cedar Lakes Craft Center in Ripley, WV. Visit this recent post for more information!
Hi Colleen:
I’ve been enjoying your thoughts and visions from Taos as a break from the daily grind of endless e-mails. You clearly are thriving. Thank you for sharing your moments of joy with all of your friends.
I have one of your boxes in my bedroom, so the origami entry seemed most appropriate for my quick note.
These images are links to recent and less-recent cherished memories of Colleen. The boxes recall a exquisite visit to Charleston and Elkins, where she taught me to make them in the summer of 2005. And the orange and red paper were on the card I got from her last week. I love the threads of connection.
The boxes is cool.
Wow! Cool! How did you made it? What kind of paper did you use?
Violet, I use all kinds of paper. Most of these came from several shops in Taos that specialize in handmade papers, but I often use cheap craft-type wrapping paper. If you want to do this, I would recommend investing in a good rotary paper cutter and Tomoko Fuse’s book, Origami Boxes. Thanks for your comment!
How to make it?? Can you give the steps??
You can buy the book ORIGAMI BOXES by Tomoko Fuse at most good bookstores. She does a wonderful job of guiding you through the steps for all the boxes shown here.
How beautiful and exciting ! Thanks for the recommendations. Best to you.
Good post. I just found this Origami-inspired Twitter icon at Digg, which you can use on your blog if it is running WordPress.
Thanks! I haven’t quite made it to Twitter yet, but I appreciate your comment and the suggestion.
great post… just found your site on the net.. thank you.
wow…a beautiful boxes… i want to make it!
http://nurafifah06.student.ipb.ac.id
Lovely boxes. You can tell there was a lot of patience put into this fine work.
This is great, I’ll have to try – are there any other books that you would suggest as well?
Yes, I recommend Eric Kenneway’s COMPLETE ORIGAMI. A wonderful introduction and a very useful reference.
[…] Picture source […]