Tomoko Fuse’s Origami Art

REPETITIVE FOLDING

Here is a simple technique that can nonetheless lead to incredible shapes if used for sequential or consistent groups of folds.

In this chapter we have brought together creations of various kinds: tubular models and those made out of superimposed or multilayer folds (including infinite bisected folds)—models that, like textiles, are constructed from various types of intersecting horizontal and vertical folds and display the same pattern whether viewed from the front or back.

Tubular models, which can be lengthened or shortened, curled or rolled up, create the impression of living creatures.

Since infinite folding is likewise a form of repetitive folding, models made from infinite bisected folds not included in the previous chapter can be found here. (TF)

SNAKE 1

Width x Height 5.3 x 3.7 inches (135 x 95 mm)

SNAKE 2

Width x Height 3.9 x 2.4 inches (100 x 60 mm)

The definition of “repetitive folding” may give rise to some misunderstanding. Tomoko Fuse’s work actually has nothing to do with repetitiveness. Her natural inclination, in fact, is to explore all possible variants of every concept or technique. Her serpentine forms emerge from stretched folds or from corrugation. Some consist of semicircular sections, others are tubular. In effect, they evoke the contortions of reptiles, entangled cables, gigantic rigatoni…. Repetitive folding can also generate flat forms. Enormous sheets of paper, for example, can be shaped into foamy waves to create a churning seascape. Whenever Tomoko Fuse creates a warp out of strips, what emerges are tapestries of variegated texture, with patterns of light and shadow. In some of her other works, polygonal scales are arranged in a decorative curve, the outline of a ram’s head, rotating spheres. A basic origami maneuver is the so-called “mountain fold,” a figurative term for a convex fold that creates a sort of ridge on a sheet’s surface. I recall my first visit—about 25 years ago—to Fuse’s beautiful home in the woods near Omachi in the prefecture of Nagano, in the Japanese Alps. By this point, I already knew a Japanese expression that perfectly captured these types of places: yama mata yama (mountains and even more mountains). No expression could serve as a more appropriate title for one of these works as it describes not only the shape of many of Fuse’s creations but also the beautiful place that surrounds her and that exerts a strong and steady impact on her origami. (DB)