Robert Lang’s origami insects

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Black Widow; one uncut square of Origamido paper (2003).

I’ve been doing origami on and off since I was about 11 years old but the real measure of the art is whether you can invent your own folds rather than simply copying other people’s. This is something I’ve never managed since you have to devote yourself consistently to it until you can play with the paper, rather than fighting against it.

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Hercules Beetle; one uncut square of Origamido paper (2003).

Robert E Lang is quite remarkable in this regard, with a host of unique folds on his site, the majority of which maintain the tradition of only using a single uncut square of paper. (Some of his more complex folds such as the Black Forest Cuckoo Clock deviate from this.) I love the insect folds but there are many other animals and objects there. You only have to compare the rudimentary classic frog fold (one of the few I can do from memory) with one of his tree frogs to see how far he is beyond the basics.

Previously on { feuilleton }
Lalique’s dragonflies
Lucien Gaillard
Wesley Fleming’s glass insects
Insect Lab
The Museum of Fantastic Specimens