Origami and Copyright Laws: What Paper Folders Need to Know

Although most people who practice origami do so as a hobby, there are some people who have made origami their full-time job. For example, Nick Robinson is an origami professional who makes his living illustrating books, creating origami designs, and working on commercial origami projects.

If you are interested in origami as an art form, it's important to make sure you're respecting the intellectual property of your fellow paper folders.

Why Is Copyright Law Important?

When you break copyright laws, you're taking away the earning potential of people who depend upon their paper folding skills to support themselves and their families.

Copyrighted Origami Models

Models that are not in the public domain belong to the person who created the design. If you wanted to include these designs in an origami book or fold them to sell to others, you would need to obtain permission from the copyright holder. On an origami website, you can normally find an email in the "Contact Us" section that you can use to obtain permission from the copyright holder.

For example, these About.com projects were created by Dana Hinders as original designs:

• Origami exploding box card
• Origami ghost
• Logan's simple airplane

If you wanted to use any of these designs in commercial project, you would need to email origami@aboutguide.com to obtain permission.

Keep in mind that many origami artists are very generous people who love sharing their passion for paper folding with others. If you are a fan of someone's work and contact them to ask for permission to use a design, the artist might allow you to use the design for free or for a very small fee. In the case of instructions obtained through an origami website, many webmasters will allow you to use their designs as long as you properly credit the website and provide a link to their work.

Private vs. Commercial Use

Copyright law is also affected by the idea of private vs. commercial use. If you buy a book of origami instructions or learn how to make a model from a free website, such as About Origami, you are allowed to fold as many copies of each figure as you wish for your own private use. For example, you could make a collection of origami flowers for your home and a bouquet to give to a friend.

Commercial use refers to activities that are intended to generate a profit, such as selling a book of origami instructions or selling origami models at a craft show. Commercial use is where most copyright problems occur. You can't make money off someone's intellectual property without their permission.

Fair Use

Fair use is an exception to standard copyright laws. Fair use means the use of copyrighted material for research, teaching, criticism, comment, news reporting, or scholarship. For example, a public school teacher who uses portions of an origami diagram to demonstrate symmetry in a geometry lesson would likely fall under the fair use provisions of copyright law.

Additional Information

Origami USA has prepared a detailed analysis of copyright as it relates to the art of paper folding.

About Inventors also has a section of copyright law information that you might find helpful.

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Akira Yoshizawa

Akira Yoshizawa went beyond folding simple origami cranes to transform the hobby into a unique art form.  Stock.XCHNG

If you are interested in the history of paper folding, there's no doubt that Akira Yoshizawa is a name to remember. While no single person can be credited with "inventing" origami, Akira Yoshizawa is widely recognized for his work in raising origami from a craft to a living art form. For this reason, he is often referred to as either the "grandmaster of origami" or the "father of origami."

A Brief Akira Yoshizawa Biography

Akira Yoshizawa was born on March 14, 1911. His parents were dairy farmers, but he moved to Tokyo when he was just 13 years old to take a job in a factory. When he was in his early 20s, he was promoted from his factory worker position to a job as a technical draftsman. As part of his duties, he was responsible for teaching new employees basic geometry. He decided to use origami, which he had learned as a child, as a teaching tool to make these lessons easier to understand.

The Centre helps promote awareness of origami by arranging exhibitions, demonstrations, and instructional classes.

In 1956, Akira Yoshizawa married his wife Kiyo. She served as his manager and taught origami alongside him until his death.

Akira Yoshizawa's incredible origami skill afforded him many opportunities to travel around the world, which made it possible for him to serve as a goodwill ambassador for the Japanese government. In 1983, he was named to the Order of the Rising Sun. This is one of the highest honors for a citizen of Japan.

Akira Yoshizawa Origami Models and Exhibitions

Even though Akira Yoshizawa was a self-taught origami artist, his work was eventually exhibited in shows around the world. His origami appeared in exhibits at the Cooper Union in New York, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, and the Louvre.

Akira Yoshizawa estimated he created 50,000 different origami models over the course of his career. However, only a handful of these were ever diagrammed and published. Simple and elegant lines were the defining features of Akira Yoshizawa's origami models. He never used scissors, glue, or additional embellishments when creating his origami designs. His lumbering gorillas, flying dragons, and graceful cranes were sculptural art. His goal was to convey emotion and feeling – even if this didn't result in an entirely realistic representation of his subject.

Invention of the Wet-Folding Technique

Although Akira Yoshizawa pioneered many different origami techniques, wet-folding is one of his most significant contributions. This technique involves slightly dampening the paper before making a fold. Wet-folding allows the paper to be manipulated more easily, resulting in finished origami models that have a rounder and more sculpted look. The ability to create origami with a more realistic appearance was an important advancement in paper folding, since it took models away from the realm of simple crafts and towards true artistic expression.

Wet-folding is most often used with thicker paper, however. Normal origami paper is very thin and thus prone to tearing when using the wet-folding technique.

Creation of the Yoshizawa-Randlett System

The Yoshizawa-Randlett system of notations is a standardized way of diagramming the steps involved in folding a particular origami model. In 1954, Akira Yoshizawa's Atarashi Origami Geijutsu (New Origami Art) used a diagramming system that included dotted and dashed lines to indicate mountain and valley folds, plus symbols such as the markings for “inflate” and “round.” This caught the attention of Samuel Randlett and Robert Harbin, who added a few additional symbols to develop the complete notation system that is still used by paper folders around the world today.

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Origami Artworks That Will Expand Your Understanding Of The Art Of Folding Paper

In 1959, the famous origami exhibition, "Plane Geometry and Fancy Figures," was held in the United States, taking place at The Cooper Union in New York.

Shakti, Joel Cooper

For those who need a refresher, origami, the traditional Japanese art of paper folding, transforms a flat sheet of paper into a 3D sculpture without the use of scissors, tape or anything besides good old folding and sculpting. In their simplest forms, origami often take the shapes of cranes or butterflies, which in themselves are no easy feat. The exhibited works in Cooper Union, however, were far from paper cranes.

Now, decades after the original exhibition, origami is about to make a grand return to The Cooper Union. The revival show, titled "Surface to Structure: Folded Forms," will bring together over 80 artists from 5 continents, showing how the ancient art has evolved since "Plane Geometry." Origami masters and contemporary artists will come together from all corners of world, displaying the artistic potential embedded in everysingle sheet of paper.

"We want to share our passion for this art form with the world and inspire others to take part in and contribute to the legacy of origami," explained exhibition curator Uyen Nguyen, currently a senior at The Cooper Union. Nguyen is currently raising funds for the exhibition, which will be free to the public, on IndieGogo. The moneyraised will go to the international shipping costs of the works as well as insurance and installation fees. Head to the IndieGogo page to learn more and donate.

In the meantime, take a look at 12 origami masterpieces from the exhibition below, and soak in the fact that all you need to make a breathtaking artwork is a piece of paper and your very own hands.

Rabbits in Motion, Ronald Koh, Folded by Ng Boon Choon

St. Michael - The Archangel, Tran Trung Hieu

Asymmetry, Erik and Martin Demaine

Little Roses Kusudama, Maria Sinayskaya

Event Horizon, Byriah Loper

Constrained Bowl, Linda Smith

Aristo-Braque / Viszla, Gachepapier

Flower Tessellation, Evan Zodl

Kiwi, Bernie Peyton

Dreamer, Giang Dinh

Floating Diagonal Shift, Rebecca Gieseking

Source : huffingtonpost

Robert. J Lang - Monumental Origami

"Redpath Pteranodon," a 4-meter (16') wingspan origami Pteranodon installed at the Redpath Museum, McGill University,Montreal, Canada. Paper custom made by Papeterie St.-Armand, Montreal, Canada.

Singer and Violinist from an 8-piece life-size
orchestra, folded for the DRUPA trade show.

The term "Monumental" in "Monumental Origami" refers to size: this is large-scale origami, intended to make a visual impact from a distance. The uses of monumental origami are several: it can be used for decoration, for display, to make a statement about a company or product, or simply to provoke thought in the observer. One of the characteristics of origami is that it embodies a contradiction: how can such an intricate, detailed object come from a single uncut square? Monumental origami takes that contradiction and expands upon it. Conventional, bread-box-sized-or-smaller origami challenges the observer: is it possible from a single sheet? Monumental origami makes the same challenge, but adds the element of size to the mix.

Origami Instruction

Did you know that origami came from the Japanese words "Oru" meaning "to fold" and "kami" meaning "paper"? And that's exactly what we do here - fold paper!

There's nothing quite like the joy you get from transforming a plain square piece of paper into a container, animal, flower, etc.

It still puts a smile on our faces when we complete an origami!

Follow our instructions to make something today, right now!

Origami is fun, easy, inexpensive and great for sharing with others.  This is an activity that has been passed on from one generation to another, despite huge technological advances.

Let's make sure that it will continue on for many generations to come.

Below is a video of one of the coolest origami we folded lately, the Magic Rose Cube, a model by Valerie Vann.

Credits : origami instruction




Here is a collection of origami made by readers of this site!




 

Origami Tips for Teachers

Choose the models according to not only the appetites but also the skills of the classes.

It takes three to five times longer time to teach a model than to fold it alone. Make a loose schedule.

When teaching a large class, use a large piece of paper, so that everyone can see it.

Show a completed model first. It will motivate the classes. In addition, they can understand the purpose of each step.

Crane

The origami crane is the most well known of all the origami models: These instructions should make it easy for you to make your own beautiful crane. Use some pretty paper to make this lovely origami model: it is a very elegant bird!

Origami Tips for Enthusiasts

Wash your hands before you fold. It's important if you want to make a beautiful model.

Imagine how your model will look like, and choose suitable paper. Choose paper according to the model; or choose a model according to the paper.

Most models have their structures. You should understand them. And find out the best sequence. Change some folds if necessary. You don't have to follow the diagrams.

Origami Tips for Beginners

Use thin and crisp paper. Origami paper (sometimes called kami) or photocopy paper will work. Don't use expensive paper at first.

Read the book from beginning. You must be familiar with the symbols and basic folds. Learn before folding.

Look at the diagrams carefully. Make sure you follow the sequence exactly as numbered. When lost, compare the diagram with the next one, and guess how to make it as described in the next diagram. If you can't figure out, begin again from the first step.