Hi, I’m Russell. Welcome to Origami Expressions.
I’ve been doing origami for more than 30 years – off and on, ever since I found the diagrams for a flapping bird in a Rupert Annual in the early 1970s. I tried to make it but couldn’t understand the instructions so I asked my Dad to make one for me. I was fascinated by it, it seemed almost magical. So much so that I unfolded it to see how it worked. Unfortunately, I couldn’t fold it again and all I had left was a square of white paper with creases on it. The magic was ruined.
Later, I found a copy of Robert Harbin’s book Origami: The Art of Paper Folding on the bookshelf at home. Dad had borrowed it from the school library where he worked. This time I could understand the diagrams and folded the flapping bird myself before going on to fold every other model in the book over time. When I found a copy of Eric Kenneway’s book Complete Origami in the school library, I was hooked. I bought myself a copy. These two books became the start of my origami book collection.
Today, I enjoy folding origami models that are representations of something. I am less concerned by what it is a representation of, and more by how well I think it captures the subject – for instance is it particularly graceful, dramatic, whimsical or funny? Does it have a sense of story behind it? I prefer to focus on the artistic side of origami rather than the math, structures and formulae that underpin it. The models featured on this site will tend to reflect these preferences, although I will include a variation of subjects, models and techniques to appeal to a wide audience.
In 2020, I published my first origami book, Origami Made Simple. It is aimed at the absolute beginner or those that like folding easy origami designs and is as jargon-free as possible. 30 of the models are traditional designs (like the origami crane) and another 10 are my own creations (like the Five Fold Penguin or origami teapot). The book progresses in difficulty with each chapter, starting at 10 steps or less, up to a maximum of 25 steps.
I’ve never forgotten the delight and excitement I felt when I first saw that flapping bird that Dad made for me using the instructions in the Rupert Annual. I enjoy folding simple traditional origami models either with, or for children and I like to think they get the same sense of wonder from it as I did. This site is an extension of that thought – to share my own passion for origami, and hopefully to inspire others along the way, and maybe encourage people to find something in origami that they enjoy.
Thanks for reading!
Russell.
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