June 16, 2009

By Benjamin John Coleman

Creator of the Origami Bonsai art form

“Advanced Origami Bonsai” was officially released on June 1, 2009.  The book has shipped in DVD format to Brazil, Germany, Indonesia, the United States, and El Salvador.  This is an exciting time for me, filled with hope.  I know I’ve written a good book, and I know that the techniques taught in this book have tremendous potential.  The first few books are now in the hands of some seasoned and capable Origami enthusiasts. 

Honestly, I’m excited.  As a former math teacher I know that each person is unique; their perception of the world is different, their thought processes vary, and their creativity is expansive.  I have learned to expect the unexpected, and that what I don’t know is far more powerful than what I do.  As I am writing this I know that someone somewhere is combining an Origami flower or leaf with a Makigami branch structure in a way I never considered, and that they will create something of rare beauty that will last for generations.  This is something very special.

Origami Bonsai is a revolutionary approach to an ancient art.  For the first time we are able to assemble our favorite Origami flowers into durable plants made from paper.  Today we open a new chapter in art, and in humanity, as we are now able to reflect our human perceptions of the world in a more accurate and detailed way.

When I was young the supermarket was filled with paper.  Virtually every food product came in paper packaging.  I marveled at the flexibility of paper.  Suddenly, 40 years later everything comes in plastic, and it is slowly surrounding us.  I see plastic bags tangled in trees when I walk near my home.  Birds starve from eating plastic they mistake for food.  And every time I eat a container of yogurt I can’t help but think of the 450 years it will take the container to degrade.  Society is slowly awakening to the fact that we have covered our planet with a layer of plastic.  Paleontologists say we will be called “the plastic people” by future generations.  Our legacy was plastic.

I dream in paper.  And because I dream in paper my dreams disappear; they degrade.  Sculptures that fail get tossed into the paper recycling bin to become future sculptures of someone else.  This is an elegant future.  My hope is that Origami Bonsai will ignite a new generation to consider paper as a renewable, degradable, flexible material of the future, not the past.

August 19, 2009

The Quest for Chopsticks?

by Benjamin John Coleman

Some months ago it occurred to me that Makigami could serve as an alternative to wood in the manufacture of chopsticks.  Each year more than 25 million trees are turned into chopsticks, and with the recent introduction of a tax on one-time-use chopsticks in China there is huge potential for an alternative.  Because Makigami chopsticks are RECYCLEABLE one time use chopsticks, I suspect they would not be subject to the tax.

Chopsticks are subject to tremendous forces.  The pressure required on the stick for lifting a large heavy food item, like a shrimp, is well beyond the ability of the Makigami we use for branches.  The question was, could a different Makigami solution be developed that would generate the necessary rigidity?  To help answer this, I contacted my cousin Gretchen Anderson who works as a curator that the Carnegie Museum in Pittsburg, and happens to be an expert on both glues and paper. 

With the help of my cousin, we developed a new solution that provides four to seven times the rigidity of the solution used for branches.  It makes a PERFECT chopstick.  The surface is slightly rougher than wood chopsticks, which provides more feedback to the user.  Additionally, the chopsticks can be manufactured in any color.  And, because they’re made from paper, they’re environmentally friendly and can not only be made from recycled paper, but can be recycled after their use in the paper recycling bin.

September 11, 2009

Introducing "Origami Bonsai Electronic Magazine"

Over the past few weeks my second book "Advanced Origami Bonsai" has become very popular on the site www.Scribd.com, and I have been honored by becoming a "recommended subscription" on Scribd.  In response to this overwhelming support I decided to start a magazine for Origami Bonsai aficionados.  This magazine will feature various articles and design tips, and help to promote Origami Bonsai to the general public.

The magazine also has advertisements for supplies and tools as well as for Origami Bonsai sculptures and Makigami accessories.  These clickable advertisements are pre-programmed to perform searches on www.Etsy.com for the key words "origami bonsai" and "makigami jewelry."  This means that any artist that chooses to sell their work on Etsy will be included in the search results when people click on the advertisements! 

The premiere magazine includes the following articles: "Dark Green Leaves"  teaches how to use watercolors and acrylic paints to create a lifelike, complex colored dark green with a natural looking glossy finish, "Folding the Ivy Leaf" a new folding pattern for leaves that look much like ivy, and "Hybrid Origami Bonsai" which discusses combining attributes from different species of plants and animals to inspire unique Origami Bonsai sculptures.

To subscribe to the magazine, click the link below and then click the blue button on the right labeled "Subscribe."

Subscribe to Origami Bonsai Electronic Magazine

Regards,

Benjamin John Coleman