Volume1Issue1

October1,2009

Origami Bonsai
ELECTRONICMAGAZINE
Wehaveonlyjustbegun.

Inthisissue: DarkGreenforLeaves FoldingtheIvyLeaf HybridOrigamiBonsai

Copyright C 200 09,BenjaminJohnColema an,AllRightsReserved. R

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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

OrigamiBonsaiElectronicMagazine Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved. Thisisacollaborativeproductionsoyourstoriesandsuggestionsareanintegral partofthispublicationssuccess.Pleasesubmitarticlesandinputviaemailto: Ben@Benagami.com Foradvertisingratesandinformation,pleaseclickthelinkabove.Ourcurrent circulationisapproximately3,000readers,howeverthisdocumentwillremainon theinternetintotheforeseeablefuture,soactuallongtermreadershipismore significantthantheexistingnumberofsubscribers. OrigamiBonsaiisaregisteredtrademarkofBenjaminJohnColeman.

Joinus!
Learnthisexcitingnewartformandbepart ofagrowingcommunityofenthusiasts! Youcanorderthebookbyclickingthe followinglinks OrdertheEBook OrderthebookonDVD(newercomputers) OrderthebookonCD(oldercomputers)
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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

FrequentlyAskedQuestions
WhatisOrigamiBonsai? OrigamiBonsaiisanewartformdevelopedoverthepastthreeyearsbyartist,authorand inventorBenjaminJohnColeman.Origamiflowersandleavesareattachedtobranchestoform dramatic,visuallycomplexsculptures.Thesesculpturesareeitherfreestanding(canbeplaced ontopoftables),orwallhanging(attachtowallswithahook). OrigamiBonsaiisrevolutionary.Forthefirsttimeorigamienthusiastscanassembletheirwork intosculptures.Thesesculpturesareappealingandhavebothartisticandcommercialvalue. Whileitcouldbearguedthatorigamiisacraftandnotanartform,itisclearthatOrigami Bonsaiisanartformascolor,shape,andplantinteractionscanbeusedtoconveythoughts, meaningsandevenemotions. Wedonotattempttoduplicatenature,asthiswouldbeimpossible.Insteadwemimicnature andusenaturalformsasinspirationforourworks.Theworldofplantsseemschaoticand complex,anditisinhumannaturetotrytoaddordertothatworld.However,itisthatchaos thatisthesourceofmuchofthebeautyofourwork.OrigamiBonsaiartistsaspiretoexpress thischaosinacoherentmannerintheirwork,usingittoconveyamessage,orsimplytocreate somethingbeautiful. WhatisMakigami? BenjaminJohnColemaninventedMakigamitocomplementOrigamiBonsai.Itallowsartiststo maketrees(networksofbranches)frompaper.MakigamimeansrollpaperinJapanese. Newspaperissaturatedinasolutionandthenrolled,muchlikethesnakesyourolledasa childfromclay.ThesewetMakigamistripsarethenattachedtocylindersandallowedtodry. Whendry,thesolutionthestripswererolledinactsasglue.Theresultantpaperproductisstiff, durable,andeasytoworkwith.RecentadvancesinMakigamihaveledtotheabilitytomake itemslikebonsaiplanters,jewelry,andotheritemsfromthematerial. Doyouusewiresinsidethebranches? No.OrigamiBonsaiisabouttestingthelimitsofpaperasamedium(material)andabout discoveringnewapplicationsforpaperinourwork. Whatisthedifferencebetweenwww.OrigamiBonsai.organdwww.Benagami.com? Benagami.comisawebsitefeaturingtheworkofBenjaminJohnColeman.OrigamiBonsai.org isawebsitededicatedtofurtherdevelopingOrigamiBonsai.AtOrigamiBonsai.orgyouwill

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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

findthelatesttechniquesandfoldingdiagrams,andcansubmityourideastobeincludedon thesite. HowdoIgetstartedmakingOrigamiBonsai? Allyouneedtobeginissomesmallsquaresofpaper.Ifyouwouldliketobuildasculptureyou willneedeithertheprintedbookOrigamiBonsai(TuttlePublishing,availableinApril2010) orAdvancedOrigamiBonsaianelectronicbookavailablethroughwww.Scribd.comoronDVD orCDonwww.Etsy.com.Thereisaclickableadvertisementforthisbookonthesecondpageof thisdocumentthatwilltakeyoudirectlytothebooks. WhatisthedifferencebetweenthebooksOrigamiBonsai,AdvancedOrigamiBonsai,and OrigamiBonsaiAccessories? OrigamiBonsaiisthefirstbookintheseries.ItispublishedbyTuttlePublishingandwillbe availableinbookstoresinAprilof2010.Thebookteacheshowtofoldmanyvarietiesof flowersandleavesandthenassembletheflowersandleavesontorealtreebranches.Thisis largelyanorigamibook. AdvancedOrigamiBonsaiisthesecondbookintheseries.Itwaspublishedelectronicallyon June1,2009.Itteacheshowtofoldafewdifferenttypesofflowersandleaves,butmore importantly,itteacheshowtomakebranchesfrompaperusingtheMakigamitechnique. Whilethereissomeorigamiinthisbook,itismostlyaboutMakigami. Origami Bonsai Accessories isthethirdbookinthe seriesandisstillinthe researchanddesignphase. Thisbookteacheshowto makebonsaiplanters, jewelry,andotheritems frompaper.Itwillbe entirelyMakigami.

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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

OrigamiBonsaiUpdateforOctober1,2009
byBenjaminJohnColeman CopiesofAdvancedOrigamiBonsaihavebeen shippedtocountriesaroundtheworld.Peoplein Brazil,ElSalvador,Italy,Germany,Australia, Indonesia,theUnitedStates,andChileare participatinginthiscreativesynergyofOrigamiand Bonsai. OnAugust21,2009AdvancedOrigamiBonsai becameafeatureddocumentontheelectronic booksiteScribd.com.Thenextdayitgraduatedto thehotlist.Finally,onSeptember2,2009my accountwasputonScribd.comssuggested subscriptionslist.Sincethenthousandsofreaders havesubscribedtoOrigamiBonsaipublications. PeoplesdesiretostayinformedonOrigamiBonsais progressisanindicationthatthismaybecomeavery popularartform. IalsoreceivedsomedishearteningnewsfromTuttlePublishing.Theprintingofmyfirst bookinthisseries,OrigamiBonsaihasbeendelayed.Thepublishersaysthebookwill beavailableinAprilof2010ratherthanNovemberof2009.However,theyplanto includeaDVDwithfoldingvideosinthebook. OflateIhavebeenworkingwithmycousin,GretchenAnderson,acuratorwiththe CarnegieNaturalHistoryMuseum.Sheisanexpertinthefieldofbothadhesivesand paper;whobettertoconsultondevelopingamoredurableformofMakigami?Together wedevelopedanewtypeofMakigamithatisapproximatelyfourtimesmorerigidthan theexistingmaterial.WhilethisnewMakigamiisnotgoodformakingbranches,itdoes openthedoorforMakigamitoentertheconsumerproductsmarket.Thefinished productisnowstrongenoughtomakethingslikeonetimeusechopsticks,toothbrush handlesandmanyotherconsumerproducts.WhenyouconsiderthatMakigamiiseasily recycledandrequiresfarlessenergytoproductthanplastic,thisrepresentsawindfallfor theecologyofourplanet. BenColeman
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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

HowtoCreateaRealisticDarkGreenColorforLeaves
byBenjaminJohnColeman
OneofthemostfrustratingobstaclesIhave encounteredinmyworkisobtainingcolorsthat looknatural.Myfirstattemptatcreatingdark greenwasadisaster.Istartedoutusingthe darkestgreeninthesetofwatercolorsIhad purchased.Afterthreecoatsofpaintmypaper wasstilllightgreen. Thisisaproblemthatcanbeovercomebyan understandingofbothourmaterialsandhow colorisperceivedbythehumaneye.Oureyes interpretcolorbasedonthespectrumofreflected light(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_vision)a coloredobjectemits.Whenwhitelighthitsapieceofwhitepaper,itappearswhite.Ifredlightis directedatawhitepieceofpaper,itwillreflectbackaspink,yellowlightreflectsbackaslightyellow. Whenweaddacoatofgreenpainttothewhitepaperitreflectsastreamoflightintooureyesthatisa mixtureofwhiteandgreen.Itisthiswhitewashedgreenthatisntparticularlydesirable.Youcan repeatedlyaddmorecoatsofgreen,improvingthecolorsomewhat,butyouwillneverachieveadark, lushandnaturallookinggreeninthismanner.Thereasonissimple;whiteisacolor,nottheabsenceof color. Tocreateareallookingdarkgreenwehavetoovercompensateforthewhitecolorofourpaper.Wedo thisbylimitingthereflectedlightspectrumofthepaperwithblue.Itshouldbenotedthatusingblack watercolorisamistake.Blackwatercolorpaintactuallyappearstobedarkpurplewhenappliedto whitepaper,andtendstodiffuseanyexistingorsubsequentcolors,makingthemlooklessdistinct.To obtainagooddarkgreen,thefirstcoatofpaintappliedtowhitepapershouldbeamixtureofequal partsofdarkblue(PrussianorUltramarineblue)anddarkyellow(YellowOchre)alongwithahalfpartof darkbrown(burntumber)watercolorpaint,anotherequalpartofartistmediumandabout10parts water.Forthedarkestpossibleleaves,applyasecondcoat,orforlighterleavesaddsomebrightyellow (lemonyellow)toit.Allowyourleafsheetstodrycompletelybeforecontinuingtothenextstep. Thefinalsteptoobtainanaturallookingleafcoloristoaddamixtureofwater(10parts),acrylicpaint(1 part)andartistmedium(1part).Thismixturewillprovideaglossyyetnaturalcoatingtotheleafthatis alsodustresistant.Tomakeyourleaveslookevenmoreinteresting,youcanuseanacryliccolorfroma differentcolorfamily.Ifindusingburntsienna,adarkorangebrown,looksnatural.Ihavealsoused diluteacrylicblack,waterandartistmediumtodarkentheleafcolorasafourthcoat. OrigamiBonsaiElectronicMagazineVol.1Issue1 Page7

Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

ToObtainaDarkGreen
1.Mixequalpartsofdarkblueanddarkyellow withonehalfpartofbrownandartistmedium andabout10partsofwater. 2.Applyonecoatofthemixturetobothsidesofa sheetofpaper. 3.Applyasecondcoatofthemixturetothe sideofthesheetwhichwillbevisibleafter folding.Allowyoursheetstodrycompletely beforeproceedingtothenextstep.They shouldcurlabitandfeelroughandcrispy whendry.

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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

4.Decideonacolorschemeforyourleaves.Thefinalcoatswontgreatlyaltertheoverall color,butwilladdsomevariationandanicefinish.Herearesomeideas:

1coatofthe mixture 2coatsofthe mixture 2coatsand1 coatoflemon yellowacrylic 2coatsand1 coatofburnt siennaacrylic 2coatsand1 coatofblack acrylic 2coatsand1 coatoforange acrylic

InthisexampleIwilladdacoatofburntumberacrylic,artistmediumandwater,andthenadd anothercoatofblackacrylic,artistmediumandwater. Theburntumbermixtureyieldsthis resultantcolor:

Theblackmixtureachievesthedesireddark greenfinalcolor.Toseeivyleavesmade fromthissheet,turnthepage.

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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

FoldingtheIvyLeaf
TheIvyLeafisausefulandeasytofolddesign. Whetherusedasacomponentofahybridsculpture, orforcreatingivyplantsthatwraparoundother plants,theivyleafwilladdvarietytoyourwork.
1.Startwithasquareofcoloredpaper,withtheleafcolorfacing up. 2.Foldthesquareinhalfdiagonally. 3.Foldthecorner1/3ofthewaytothecenter.Watchthebottom tiptoensureyoudontoverorunderfoldit.Flipthepaper.

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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

4.Foldtheothersidethesamewayyoudiditinstep3. Makesureyoualignthisfoldtotheoneontheother side. 5.Foldthecornertothecenterlinealigningtheedge.Flip yourmodel. 6.Performthesamefoldontheotherside.

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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

OrigamiBonsai SuppliesandTools

Rollertoolmakesfoldscrispandreversefolding almosteffortless.Doesntdamageyourpaintjob oryourpaperlikeastraightedgewill!

Artistmedium,akeytopreservingorigamiand creatingrich,lifelikefinishes.

Setof18watercolorpaints

Setof18acrylicpaints

LargeBrushSet SmallBrushSet Clickontheimagestoviewpricingandtoorder.

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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved. 7.Foldveinsintheleafbyfoldingandunfoldingbothpleats ofpaperrepeatedly.Unfoldthecenteroftheleaf. 8.Foldtheuppertipoftheleaftowardstheoppositetip. 9.Foldthetipyoufoldedinstep8intheotherdirection

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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved. 10.Pinchthetiptoformthestem.

11.Crimptheleafstemintothebaseof theleafbysqueezingwiththethumband indexfingerofonehandwhilepushinginto thestemwiththethumbofyourotherhand.

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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

HybridOrigamiBonsai
Whilethepressandthepublicarehardatworkdiscussingtheimpactofgeneticengineeringon plantsandanimals,wearedoingthesame,butinthemediumofpaper.HybridOrigamiBonsai plantscombineeitherdifferentplantsorplantswithanimalstocreateuniqueinterpretationsof theresultantspecies.Ihavebeenhavingalotoffunwiththisconceptasyouwillseeinthe followingpictures.

SucculentbyBenColeman Thisismyinterpretationofamixof ChristmascactusandIceplant.The resultantsculpturehaslongneedles;the flowersareinfluencedbythecolorsof Christmascactusflowers,andtheleaves areoval,similartothoseofaniceplant.

ThissculpturewasdonatedtoRhodeIslandPBSand willbeavailablethroughtheirtelevisedauctionin December,2009.

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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

WeepingDragonbyBenColeman Thissculptureisacombinationofa weepingwillowtreeandasnapdragon plant.Thesnapdragoninfluencesare reflectedintwoshootsthatemit individualflowersatthetopofthe sculpture.Theflowershapeisalsosnap dragonish.

Theweepingwillowtreeisreflectedinthe droopybranchesofthesculpture.Each branchdroopsearthward,seeminglyin responsetotheirweight,justlikea weepingwillowtree.

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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

TheSquidroseChallenge
Imadethissquidrose,acombinationofa roseplantandasquidbyrollingagroupof stemsandthenrollingtwosheetsofpaper aroundthestems.Perhapsthisconcept couldbeimprovedupon?

Iinviteyoutotrytomakeasquidrose.If youdo,emailmeapictureandIwill includeitinthenextissueofthis publication.Emailmeat Ben@benagami.com.

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Copyright2009,BenjaminJohnColeman,AllRightsReserved.

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