Top Ten Origami Artists

Think you know Origami?  Think again!

In last month's blog post, I introduced my Top Ten artists pushing the limits of paper. One of those artists was Akira Yoshizawa, the man who, in the 1950s, took the western world by storm and caused an origami craze. He modernised and changed people's perception of origami and helped elevate and transform it into a global art form. I also introduced Ron Resch who, back in the 1960s, was at the forefront of developing 3D computer-aided software. You can't write about origami, as a metamorphic fine art form and synthesis between art, maths and science, without first introducing these two luminaries.
​The introduction of mathematical and geometric techniques in origami design pushed the limits of possibility and helped artists realise new artistic visions. Some techniques also turned out to have practical applications in medicine and space exploration.

Here are my TOP TEN artists pushing the limits of origami

Sparkle from the Relief Series (Photo: Yuko Nishimura)

1. Hypnotising origami, Yuko Nishimura
​Yuko Nishimura reworks single sheets of handmade paper into abstract, contoured works of art, the only tools are her hands.
​Using a monochromatic colour scheme, her works echo the shape and visual pattern of mandalas. Light plays a crucial role in the way abstract designs and shadows are created, revealing the folds.
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​Find out more about her geometric artwork here.

2. Origami artist, Robert Lang
Robert Lang is an origami artist and a respected laser  physicist. In the 1990s he developed a new geometric folding system involving circle packing which enabled him to design complex and lifelike forms, with any number of extremities, from uncut squares of paper. The second image shows clearly the circle packing and crease folding pattern for the scorpion sculpture.
Taking this expertise into practical applications, he has collaborated with other scientists, doctors and engineers to apply his knowledge of folding to medical devices, space telescope optics and the design of car airbag deployment.
​Find out more about his geometric paper art here.

Scorpion from one uncut square of origami paper (Photo: Robert Lang)

Scorpion varileg, opus 379, 2000, creases pattern (Photo: Robert Lang)

Title: Untitled Medium: Paper, adhesive, monofilament nylon, lead (Photo: Richard Sweeney)

3. Paper artist, Richard Sweeney
Richard Sweeney combines repetitive geometric shapes and folding modules with computer-aided design and production techniques to create sculptures inspired by the organic structures and growth patterns found in nature, for example, mounds of snow and clouds.
Sweeney often works without a preconceived form in mind, instead exploring a particular method of making to generate many variations, which ultimately develop into more complex structures. He is driven by curiosity to discover three dimensional forms through the physical manipulation of material.

​Find out about his abstract geometric art here.

4. Origami artist, Paul Jackson
Paul Jackson studied at the Slade, London and was one of the first origami professionals in the West.
His paper sculptures aspire to be 'simple, elegant in sequence and form, surprising in concept'.
​In addition to being a paper artist he is also a paper engineer, writer and teacher with several excellent books published on the application of folding techniques in design,

Discover more about Paul Jackson's paper art here.

(Photo: Paul Jackson)

Pan Albers, 2019 an imagined collaboration with Josef Albers (Photo: Demain and Demaine)

5. Origami curved crease sculptures, Erik and Martin Demaine
Erik Demaine completed his PhD by the age of 20, his dissertation was a seminal work in the field of computational origami. Lecturing at MIT, he is exploring origami applications in robotics, architecture and molecular biology.
Artistically he collaborates with his artist father, Martin. Their 'curved-crease' sculptures are a result of back and forth folds in concentric circles, this was investigated in the 1920s in the Bauhaus under Albers.
This transformation of flat paper into swirling surfaces creates sculptures that feels alive.
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​Find out more about their curved-crease sculpture.

6. Origami in your body, Zhang You and Kaori Kuribayashi-Shigetomi
The Oxford University team developed a collapsible heart stent prototype based on the water-bomb base technique to create a prototype from stainless steel that can be reduced from a width of 23 mm to 12 mm.
​The stent, which was finally produced in bioplastic, is threaded into a blood vessel, maneuvered into position in a blocked artery and then opened up to 23 mm again to prop open the artery and restore blood flow.
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Watch the TEDx talk about it here.

Prototype of a solar panel array that folds up in the style of origami, to make for easier deployment (Photo: Brigham Young University)

7. Origami in space, Koryo Miura and Brian Trease
​Scientists, constrained by rocket size, had to rethink what could be taken up in to space. In 1995, a solar panel, using an origami fold designed by astrophysicist Koryo Miura, was unfolded in space.
Researchers believe that origami could be useful one day in utilising space solar power for Earth-based purposes.
A mechanical engineer at NASA, Brian Trease, has been further developing these ideas and has partnered with researchers at Brigham Young University.

8. Origami as graffiti, Mademoiselle Maurice
The first of Mademoiselle Maurice's rainbow origami street art was an abstract message of hope, peace, and positivity in Paris, in response to the devastating earthquakes in Japan in 2011. Expanding from the Parisian streets to Vietnam and Hong Kong her theme became political and focused on the message of independence. In 2019, she was invited to Europe's largest graffiti festival in Glasgow where she made the wall art THUG! Shape and colour combine powerfully in her colourfully geometric installation works.

Find out more about her geometric street art work her.

(Photo: Mademoiselle Maurice)

Statue of Sadako Sasaki at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park (Photo: Wikipedia)

9. Origami for peace and hope
Origami has held another vital role over the last half century as a symbol of peace and hope. 
Sadako Sasaki was 2 years old and 2 km away when the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. Ten years later, the radiation made her ill with acute Leukaemia and she died aged 12.
Inspired by the age-old Japanese belief that anyone who makes 1,000 origami cranes will see their wish come true, Sadako spent her last days folding over 1,000 paper cranes.
The Hiroshima Peace Memorial was completed in 1958 and has a statue of Sadako holding a golden crane. 
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​The Peace Crane Project invites every student on the planet to fold an origami crane, write a message of peace on its wings, then exchange it with another student somewhere in the world.

10. Origami with light and shadow
Kumi Yamashita's work is extraordinary. She works in mixed media and sculpts using light and shadow.
​Her 2011 work  commissioned  by American Express used profiles from actual employees, each created by gentle folding of a sheet of origami paper. The magic happens when light is thrown at just the correct angle.

Explore more about her range of artwork here.

And finally...
You can head to my website home page to sign up for occasional studio updates (like this one), new work and special offers.
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If you have enjoyed finding out about origami and these Top Ten artists pushing the limits of origami why don't you find out more?
The British Origami Society is a registered charity devoted to the art of origami and has hundreds of members worldwide. It's a great source of enthusiasm for origami, folding techniques, easy guides to folding a range of models, supplies and books. Plus you can follow their facebook page. I highly recommend becoming a member.

Other possible sources of information (I cannot vouch for the website security)
Origami Resource Centre
Paperfolding.com