Morris Park Players

Trevor the T-Rex and I went to a show put on by the Morris Park Players, which is a community theatre group. Other than the loose connection to origami provided by Trevor, there is one reason I think that this presentation of Cinderella is related to paper folding. Specifically, it is democratic art. I ranted about it a bit in a previous post and was hoping to add some new thoughts here.

I am falling in love with the idea of local art and local production. As an example, the MPP is a community group that exists by sheer force of will. They are not the local chapter or franchise, they are the whole of the organization, no "orders from the top". In fact, the "top" seems to have been conscripted to fill in minor (but essential) parts.

There are many ways to tell a story, and Cinderella is a perfect example. There are books, international movies, plays, and such. What excites me is a matter of scale. These some 50 people were pulled right out of the community and their work has come full circle to be enjoyed by the same community. It is custom, tailored, tuned. It is an expression that satisfies the artists and the observers in a way that Avatar 3D never will. When I saw the show one part of me saw the Disneyfication of the story how a similar play could be done in any American town, but I also saw actors and actresses I recognized. People I went to school with and their families were there, which came as a complete surprise. This wasn't just any play in any town, this was a production specially selected by my community for my community. I was sincerely told why I needed to be a part of future productions (not that acting is my cup of tea) by the father of a friend.

I think origami is typically like this. Sure, there are the big shots who fly around the world and take have speaking engagements and special commissions. But most folders are just people in the community who are trying to express themselves artistically. They are from the community, and they are absorbed back into the community.

I just feel so warm and fuzzy inside when I see that people are able to build up their own art. They cannot just sit back and hope that Hollywood will finally make a good movie. Instead they make a great play and share it with their neighbors.

There will always be art, so long as humans are human, but democratic art requires us as individuals to act.

[The T-Rex was designed by John Montroll]

Origami Ball Game!

So, I woke up this morning and checked my origami day calendar. Most of the stuff in it is pretty mundane, and I often use the paper for projects of my own choosing, but I seriously consider each day's suggested project. Thursday's project was a Catcher's mit (presumably a traditional fold since I've seen it a few places before). What's so cool about that? Well, I had tickets for the Twins game today. Baseball origami the one day that I go to a baseball game? Awesome.

So, we went to the game via bus because we wanted to avoid the downtown traffic and gazillion dollar event parking fees.

Best part: since it was Earth Day, all Twins ticket holders rode for free!

The new stadium is outdoor, mainly because people forgot that they were building it in Minnesota, but the sun was really nice today and the structure had a good feel to it (though, I must admit, I am philosophically opposed to tax money paying for it).

The coolest part (for me) was when I was half-way through folding a turtle in the 4th inning and decided to finish it later. The woman sitting behind us asked me what it was going to be, so I did finish it and let her have it. It made my day that she was so excited about origami, if only briefly.

The Twins lost by 7 runs and who cares (I don't).

After the game we decided to grab some ice cream! A good day.

I like the idea of origami that finds it's own home. Each of the models pictured was left near where the picture was taken, and hopefully someone will discover it. Then they will decide what happens to it!

[The model on the bus is a dolphin designed by Jun Maekawa, the model in the cup is a swan designed by John Montroll, and the standing crane is a modified version of Jun Maekawa's three-headed crane]

Animal Origami For The Enthusiast

John Montroll published an origami book in 1985 titled Animal Origami For The Enthusiast. Some how it reached a woman who I worked with in high school. She passed the book to me and I immediately fell in love with the turtle. I folded it and a few of the other models fairly regularly. I allowed myself to be intimidated by some of the tougher models, and refused to try them. I knew I would need larger paper for some, and others just looked too hard. That was back when I considered myself a casual folder.

As of starting this blog, I have become a bit more serious regarding origami and decided that I should make a special effort to fold the models that intimidated me. Since Montroll's book is the first one I ever owned, I thought it appropriate that fold each model at least once, then move onto a different book and fold each model in it.

The photo of the lobster to the right is the last of the 25 models to be folded! It used a square of paper 25" on a side. Considering I typically use office paper made into a square, it was a bit cumbersome to maneuver the sheet, but it was surprisingly easy when all is said and done.

Now I need to pick a new book to fold through!

[The photo is my own, of a lobster folded by me and designed by John Montroll]