Origami is the act of folding paper with the words “Ori” in Japanese meaning fold and “Kami” referring to paper. It is a common activity to many. It would be impossible to come across anyone that has yet to fold a piece of paper, be it for artistic purposes or for more practical reasons. Despite this, not many people have truly dipped their toes into the complexities of origami.
Square is a collection of origami models that had significant impact on me as a child, teaching me the nuances of folding paper. The book focuses on my personal journey with origami and everlasting fascination with paper as a medium. Displayed using crease patterns, or the creases that exist on a sheet of paper upon completion of a model, the information hidden behind layers of paper that would be otherwise inaccessible is revealed in a single illustration.
The first recorded origami book, Hiden Senbazuru Orikata, used solely crease patterns in its effort to teach models, yet origami books have devolved into step-by-step instructions due to their ease of use. This book foregoes the notion that the end goal is a completed model; rather, the end goal is mastery over folding paper.