Origami is a traditional Japanese craft and artwork made from a single sheet of paper. It's like magic. Our today's theme is "miniatures." Meet a Japanese artist who creates a "tree of cranes" using numerous small 1.4-millimeter paper cranes and an artist from South Africa who folds tiny animals from 2-cm pieces of paper. Also, our origami expert "Dr. Origami" will teach you how to make an easy-to-fold "flapping crane." Welcome to the magical world of origami!
Starring: Kenichi Takitoh (Dr. Origami)
Ready, steady, magic!
Do you know what "origami" is?
It is magic made from a single sheet of paper.
Origami is an easy, yet profound traditional Japanese culture,
which can be enjoyed anytime, anywhere, with anyone!
Today, we showcase the amazingly imaginative creations of origami artists from around the globe.
Also, stay tuned for an origami lesson with our expert Dr. Origami!
He will teach us a few folding tricks in a fun and easy-to-follow way.
Get ready to see the extraordinary Origami Magic!
Dr. Origami, what is our today's theme?
- It's "miniatures."
- Oh！ "Miniatures?"
Look at these vibrant tree forms.
The tree branches with vivid leaves stretch out far and wide.
When looking up close...
What at first glance seemed to be leaves and flowers,
was in fact origami cranes, also known as "orizuru."
Each crane is no bigger than 14 millimeters.
They appear like an impressive flock of paper cranes in flight.
The "orizuru" is the most iconic model of traditional Japanese origami.
In Japan, cranes are viewed as a symbol of good fortune.
People fold them as a form of prayer for recovery from illness, longevity, or peace.
"Orizuru" serves as the main motif of the artworks by Onogawa Naoki, an artist from Japan.
Onogawa has had a passion for origami since a very young age.
Unable to fit in, he stopped going to elementary school,
and would fold origami almost every day at home instead.
He started making "trees of cranes" in his art school days.
Origami was the centerpiece of my life.
I wanted to utilize it in my art somehow.
When Onogawa was working on a concept for an artwork,
the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami struck.
He visited the disaster site, where he witnessed the terrible power of nature and listened to the stories of the local people.
This experience inspired him to start working on an artwork featuring "orizuru," a symbol of prayer.
A year after the disaster, Onogawa sculpted a figure modeled after a pine tree, which had become a symbol of revival for local people.
He donated it to the disaster-hit Rikuzentakata city.
Since then, he has sculpted over two hundred trees of cranes.
He cuts out paper squares that he'll use to fold cranes, one by one.
The squares are a mere 14 millimeters in size.
He selects the paper that is thin but firm.
The paper is so tiny that it almost disappears under his fingertips.
But still, he uses no tools.
He relies only on the fine dexterity of his hands.
He tightly and painstakingly folds the paper.
He uses his nails to shape the parts like the head and tail,
where multiple layers of paper overlap.
The tiny head is done.
It takes him just a minute to fold a crane.
Folding with a larger paper takes longer.
The smaller paper fits into my fingers. This speeds
up the process. It's quick once you get the hang of it.
The realistically looking tree trunks and branches are handmade by Onogawa.
I use wire as a base,
model the shape using putty, and paint it.
One at a time, he attaches the cranes to the branches.
He places them evenly so that there is no overlap.
Onogawa compares this process to painting a canvas.
This sculpture, which measures approximately eighty centimeters in width,
was commissioned by a sushi restaurant located in Tokyo.
Roughly 2,000 cranes are fastened to the branches.
The creation process lasted two months.
Onogawa sculpted an arch wishing to build a long-lasting relationship between the restaurant and its patrons.
On an island, which every three years becomes the stage for an international art festival,
the Naoki Onogawa Museum was opened.
The intricate beauty of Onogawa's sculptures captivates the hearts of people in Japan and abroad.
Onogawa is aiming to hold a solo exhibition overseas in the future.
His stunning origami works will surely impress many people abroad.
You too can make magic happen with a piece of paper!
It's time for Dr. Origami's origami lesson!
Folding time!
Doctor, what are we making today?
A flapping crane.
A flapping crane is a variant of the origami crane.
You can play with it by flapping its wings.
Let's make origami!
First, we fold it into a triangle.
A triangle.
One more time.
In this step, make sure the corners align perfectly.
Otherwise, it'll get more and more
misaligned as you fold.
This is a corner.
This way, it'll all align beautifully.
Next, put your finger inside the pocket...
Open it up, then flatten it.
Pull, and flatten.
All the way.
"Ow! Ow, ow, ow!"
"Don't press down so hard!" it says.
- Very funny, Doctor. Just go on, please.
- Okay.
Fold the other side in the same way.
Now, starting from the point where the corners of the paper are stacked together, fold the left and right edges to the center.
Repeat on the other side and the back.
Looks like you fold the triangular part next.
When you unfold it, the crease lines look like this.
The next part is tricky, so pay close attention.
Lift the top layer and press the sides inward.
Repeat on the other side.
There we go.
It looks like this. A diamond shape.
Now, Doctor, what to do next?
Next...
I'll do it later. Huh?
You want to know now?
This is an origami zebra.
It is only about a centimeter in size.
Playing hide-and-seek in a popcorn field...
Is a tiny rabbit.
Standing on top of a hammer...
Is a mountain goat.
These tiny figures were crafted by Ross Symons, an origami artist from South Africa.
His fascination with origami was sparked about twenty years ago by one paper crane.
He was working a nine-to-five job, enjoying origami as a hobby,
when he took up a challenge of posting a different origami figure every day for a year on his social media account.
His following began to grow,
and reached over 50,000 followers after a year.
Also, his creativity began to flourish.
His origami stop-motion animations caught a lot of attention,
resulting in various companies reaching out to him for custom creations.
He quit his job, and is now working as a full-time origami artist.
The name of this series of tiny origami figures is a cross between the words "miniature" and "origami" -
"MiniatureGami."
I figured mini origami was a nice way to make it different, a bit more challenging.
A lot of people see miniature origami as difficult. It is.
It's a lot more difficult because you have to use tools.
It takes a little bit longer to fold the figures.
Symons shows us how he creates MiniatureGami.
He cuts a square with an edge length of two centimeters.
Unlike Onogawa, he prefers to use tweezers.
He grips the paper between the tips of the tweezers to make sharp creases.
He continues folding, skillfully using the tweezers.
After giving the wings a delicate curve with his fingertips, a tiny butterfly is complete.
Symons photographs these meticulously folded MiniatureGami in his studio.
When photographing, he always makes sure to capture his works with everyday objects for scale, and that the pictures tell a story.
These two swans are floating... in a pond of nail polish.
They are freely swimming about, having it all to themselves.
This crow is resting on a power line...made from dental floss.
It has perched itself perfectly with its tiny legs.
And this white horse...
Is kept inside a fence made from safety pins.
It indeed seems to be safe, like the name implies.
I just used different objects to show the relativity.
How big it was or how small the origami piece was compared to the size of a candle or a toy of some kind.
So, every day was just a new exploration of,
"Let's see if I can make this work with this origami figure," and create the photo from that.
I think what I like about the origami the most is that it's a small little puzzle.
It's a little challenge that I get to present myself with by.
I just really like the ability to take and start something.
If I get inspired by an idea, it's very quick for me to grab some paper and start folding.
We can't wait to see what other stories will unfold in this world of miniature paper wonders.
Doctor, let's complete our flapping crane!
Picking up where we left off, we start from the diamond shape.
First, open the layers on the right side.
Then fold the bottom corner up, pushing it between the layers.
Tricky, right?
Like this, all the way in here.
If you align the edge perfectly with this crease line here, it'll turn out beautifully.
Now this side, the other side.
The angle is a little different from the last time.
Looks like you need to align edge to edge this time.
That way, you see, this corner will be the head.
Open the tip a little bit, fold it in, and there's the head!
Now bend the wings gently.
Very gently.
The trick is to give them a very slight curve, so they can flap better!
Our flapping crane is complete!
If you pull at the base of the neck and the tail...
See? It flaps!
Hey! Where are you going?
How was it, everyone?
Did you manage to make magic?
It's ORIGAMI MAGIC!
How did you like the miniature works crafted by the talented origami artists?
The intricate paper artworks created with meticulous fingers and ingenious ideas are sure to surprise us.
What other paper creations are waiting for us to discover?
We hope you will join us again on "Origami Magic!"
Have a magical origami life, everyone!
See you!