Paper Work

This topic seemed quite appropriate considering my current paper butterfly project, that and I've stumbled across more paper animals than usual in the last week or so! The first work is by Jason LaFerrera and depicts various species constructed using scans of antique maps, so as not to destroy the originals. The maps featured are often the habitats of the animal they are transformed into, for example the Virginia Northern Cardinal posted below was created thanks to a map of Virginia. The Red Crowned Crane was made using maps of Japan with profits going to the Red Cross for Japan Earthquake/Tsunami Fund. You can find more of his work here.

This next image was found on Pinterest but originally on 'FFFFOUND!' and all I can gather is that it's by Leslie David! Anyway, I like it. 

Now for the origami! The first artist named Quentin Trollip has a large collection of finely made origami creations that are all of his own design and formed from a single uncut square of paper. 

The batch origami of Sipho Mabona is something really quite beautiful I think, especially with the rainbows of colour used and the Koi themselves have an elegance to them. Maybe my paper butterflies could involve in some way, perhaps become more intricate or colourful.. not for this project though as I think the sheer number of them is impressive enough for now.

Finally, Takayuki Hori has given origami a unique twist which I find one of the most intriguing. There is certainly a morbid feel to it, as with any skeletal imagery, but what makes it particularly intriguing is the morality behind the work. Each of the designs are intended to accurately resemble a certain species from Japan's waterways that is under threat from pollution. To me it's very effective, I find the final image particularly haunting! The process is as follows:

each translucent sheet is first printed with either the images of fragments of an animal's skeleton, or,
on some pages, human-made discarded objects that are often ingested by the animals in the wild.
using the ancient tradition of folded paper, hori assembles the pages into a three-dimensional model.
once the paper is folded, the printed components are united as a whole, telling the visual story
of the animal's plight to survive in an increasingly polluted and hazardous ecosystem.