Design Review: Boulder Origami Pop-Up Book

Last semester, my WRTG 3035 class visited the Special Collections at Norlin Library where a collection of artisan books were on display. The variety of books ranged from a 15th century bible with gold filigree to an intricate pop-up biology book. The inspiration for my origami book comes from the broad spectrum of craftsmanship displayed in the Norlin exhibit.

The book is going to be a look back on my last 4 years in Boulder. If I had to categorize the aesthetic, it would be ~*~ nature origami ~*~. My favorite memories in Colorado have been outdoors, likewise the book will illustrate a number of outdoor places I frequent.

The featured image on this post is a prototype of one of the potential pages in my book. It is a scaled down version of the Flatirons. The representation is fairly minimal and symbolic, but it’s for sure the flatirons. My plan is to have several larger pages each with an iconic scene from my memory. I plan on marbling paper to represent colors and patterns from the scenes I depict.

I’m obviously going to be restricted by my origami abilities and ultimately my patience. My initial goal is to have 5 bad ass pages in my book. Maybe once I meet this design goal, I can set others. For now, I’m just going to keep making origami prototypes in the hopes that they will get better with time and effort.

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10 Comments. Leave new

  • I love this idea!! Its super nostalgic and sentimental, while also being artistic and dynamic. I love how you’re challenging yourself to learn new skills, as well as integrating all your origami into a book without glue, cutting, string, etc. This project will definitely take you some time, so I would recommend getting started as soon as possible and completing at least two origamis every week from now until the end of the semester.

    Reply
  • Ridhvik Gopal
    March 13, 2017 12:43 pm

    First of all, great idea! Your project has a great approach to it and the right amount of sentimental value. The idea to make a coffee table book instead of a regular book is a great approach. I liked the idea of incorporating pictures into book. The possibilities of incorporating different art into the book.

    Reply
  • Cyron Completo
    March 13, 2017 12:43 pm

    Origami has always been really impressive to me! I can’t wait to see how the pages pop-out and present the origami. While photography is a good way to integrate your life experience into the project, it would be interesting to see hand-drawn/painted artwork instead.

    Reply
  • Pop-up book, hell yeah!!! I love pop-up books! I am happy to hear that you are sticking with the traditional methods of origami and only using paper and no staples or glue for the whole book. If you haven’t already, you should look into Bone Folding tools to get really nice creases with the thicker paper. It will really help with making a clean end product. https://www.amazon.com/Darice-Bone-Fold-Score-6-Inch/dp/B002PNTZDI

    Will you have any interactive sections like they have in other pop-up books? Maybe some hikers on top of the flatirons or books popping out of Norlin?

    Super Cool Project!

    Reply
  • Alexandra Rivas
    March 13, 2017 12:42 pm

    This is such a cute idea. I’ve done some origami work, so I understand how tough this could actually be.
    The constraint of no binding, staples, glue or tape is really impressive. I think if you added actual photos of you and your friends in those locations it would be really neat. I can’t even imagine doing 10-20 pages, omggggg, I would get so frustrated.
    Good luck!

    Reply
  • Gautham Govindarajan
    March 13, 2017 12:41 pm

    The idea of using only folding without any glueing to make the book seems really interesting. I totally understand when you say it takes a lot of focus and concentration to do this. Looking forward to see how it turns out. All the best.

    Reply
  • I enjoyed hearing about all your different inspirations for your pop-up book. Making it similar to a huge book will be sweet to contain all the memories made in the last 4 years and will be empowering to throw on the coffee table. Pop-up books were my favorite as a kid and I look forward to seeing what you create!

    Reply
  • Emma Hammerton
    March 13, 2017 12:40 pm

    Way to take a project and turn it into something that can help you relax! These patterns and designs are really beautiful. It’s neat that you want to stick to the constraint of using nothing on your project except paper. Have you thought specifically about what designs you want to include? I think that the fact that you want it to be representative of your time in Boulder is really neat. Including actual photos of Boulder and your time in Boulder may enhance the aesthetic of your project. Props to you for attempting something this difficult!

    Reply
  • Origami is fun and hard! Good for you for going after it! You have definitely had lots of experiences over your four years and this is a great way to display your experiences. I have heard that Origami can be very soothing so it’s interesting to see what you think! I feel like I would get frustrated.

    Reply
  • Siddharth Nigam
    March 13, 2017 12:38 pm

    The Norlin library is a great inspiration! Your presentation was also great in portraying the different content. It will be interesting to see how the binding will work out especially if there is no gluing or cutting involved! Can’t wait to see the finished product!

    Reply

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