Last month I heard a lot of buzz about the James Webb Space Telescope. So I made origami of it.
James Webb Telescope, designed by Robert J. Lang. Folding template online.
Specifically, this is just the big mirror component of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).
Since people are currently interested in the JWST, and since I just made origami of it, and since I have a physics background, I thought I’d talk about it. Or at least, explain why the mirrors look that way.
Crane Heart, designer unknown
The origami crane is probably the most iconic design in origami, so naturally people make all sorts of designs that riff on it. This design has a crane grafted onto a heart. It’s easy to find video instructions for this one, although I haven’t found any credited designer.
Happy new year!
Stairway leaf, a design by me
You can make some pretty things with relatively simple patterns in origami. This model is the result of some experimentation with pleats. It has two parallel sets of pleats, which meet along a zig zag line. This is one of those models that when I stare at it for long enough, I start thinking about more things I could do with this.
Skull by Jo Nakashima, and Skeleton Hand by Jeremy Shafer
The other day, my mother said that she didn’t celebrate Halloween growing up, they only had All Saints Day. I think she’s a lot more enthusiastic about Halloween than I am. Anyway, here’s a Halloween themed origami I made once, as part of the local origami club. I think the skull is supposed to be made with one-sided black paper, to contrast the color of the eyes with the rest, but clearly I didn’t plan ahead. Another fortuitous accident, is that once we had the skull and the hand, everyone’s skull was giggling.
Coronavirus, an original design by me
Let me tell a story. Although I’ve continued posting monthly origami photos, I’ve made very little origami in the past year. I just have a really large backlog of photos (all on my Flickr, if you can find it). Although being stuck at home all the time doesn’t seem like it would interfere with origami (and indeed, I was already stuck at home in previous years due to unemployment), there was more of a psychological shift, as I felt less motivated to pursue certain interests.
Four Cubes, designed by David Mitchell
Four cubes is a fairly simple design, and the instructions are freely available through David Mitchell’s website. My recollection about this one, is that I was at an origami convention, and someone showed me David Mitchell’s website, and the next minute I produced this thing. I clearly thought this was really easy stuff, because I felt the need to make it super tiny. I believe it is less than 2 cm across.
I checked the date on this photo, and clearly my memory is completely fabricated, as I did not go to an origami convention that year.
KNL Dragon designed by Robert Lang
This is a neat origami model that can be found in Origami Design Secrets, by Robert Lang. Origami Design Secrets is basically a textbook, so it’s here to demonstrate the “grafting” technique. Grafting can be used to create a model with one piece of paper, that might otherwise require multiple sheets of paper. This model, in its original form designed by Kunihiko Kasahara, took three pieces of paper. Robert Neale made a contribution that simplified it to two sheets of paper. Kasahara’s head design was combined with a model by Robert Neale, to make a two-piece design. Finally Robert Lang made a design that only used one sheet. It’s called the Kasahara-Neale-Lang Dragon, or KNL Dragon.
Among the many models in the book, this is a favorite. When I’ve shown this to other origami people, they often ask how to make one. You’re welcome to try this video, but it’s only recommended for experienced origamists. It involves some very tricky (and small!) sink folds–something I notice Robert Lang tends to scatter all around his designs like they’re nothing! Nonetheless, it’s a lovely model with a particularly great silhouette.