Miscellaneous Monday: Origami Day

[Hana Kučerová]

Happy Monday, everyone!

Did you know that November 11 is celebrated as Origami Day?

Traditional origami is the art of folding a single sheet of paper without cutting or using glue. The term "origami" is derived from two Japanese words: ori, meaning "folded," and kami, meaning "paper." Originally known as Orikata, which translates to "folded shape," origami is believed to have originated in Japan during the 17th century, although the practice of paper folding can also be traced back to traditions in China and Europe. Origami has strong ties to mathematics and geometry, and it is used in mathematical problem-solving and engineering.

There are countless guides available on how to create various origami figures, even the special ones like Yoda from Star Wars. However, I haven’t come across anything related to Atlassian. Perhaps we should consider developing something unique ourselves!

I had the pleasure of visiting Japan back in 2012 with my boyfriend at the time (now my husband), and we absolutely fell in love with the country. This is why we decided to incorporate origami into our wedding three years later.

So, do you enjoy origami? Have you ever tried folding something yourself? Do you have any personal stories related to origami? Thank you for sharing!

[Tomislav Tobijas _Koios_]

Love this! (and the idea about Atlassian-inspired origami!)

I was introduced to origami back in elementary school by one of our maths teachers. We had one extracurricular activity (a few times a month) where we would only create origami in different shapes - mostly related to mathematics, but we also made some animals (cranes included 🦢).

I really liked making things by folding the paper so I've continued to do that apart from the workshops we had at school. A couple of years later, I also helped my mum on one occasion when she was decorating her classroom for their annual school event which was sometime around the national Pi Day. I think we made some cool shapes - from simple ones such as cubes up to complex ones such as icosahedrons and dodecahedrons.

Sadly I don't have any photos from that time but here's a cool page about possible math shapes that you can build as origamis: Mathigon 📚

Anyway, great topic and thanks for the reminder :)
As I didn't create anything in the last couple of years, I'll have to check if I still have the skills to make even some simple objects 😅

[Hana Kučerová]

@Tomislav Tobijas _Koios_ As a somebody, who studied mathematics at the university, I absolutely love your post!

[Andy Gladstone]

I have always been mesmerized watching friends fold origami. I could never conceptualize it, and have a mental block on the process. I have tried beginner origami guides, but to no avail. It's an artform that I believe is so beautiful and relaxing, so I enjoy seeing others create and their creations, but sadly have never grasped it.

In high school I was the editor-in-chief of our literary journal. The art editor would sit in meetings and make paper butterflies, cranes and cubes while we discussed the journal layout and publication. She always gifted me one of her creations at the end of the meeting. I probably still have a collection in my bedroom at my parent's house.

Thanks for the trip down memory lane @Hana Kučerová!  

[Hana Kučerová]

@Andy Gladstone thank you for sharing your story!

[Amanda Barber]

Here's Gemini's version of Atlassian origami (it even gave instructions that I haven't tried to follow...lol!)

I folded hundreds of purple paper cranes to make a display for our local Alzheimer's Association office. I had some help at a couple of events I manned a table for as well. We didn't quite make it to 1000, but I was inspired by the idea of senbazuru. Also, as a random aside - my husband and I visited Japan last month for the first time. I hope we can visit again!

[Laurie Sciutti]

Very cool, @Amanda Barber !  

[Hana Kučerová]

@Amanda Barber Wonderful, thank you!

[John Funk]

Though I have never tried to do it, I find origami fascinating. The things you can produce just by folding paper!!

[Stephen_Lugton]

The closest I got to origami was paper airplanes that crashed within seconds, must try this one one day:

[Hana Kučerová]

@Stephen_Lugton Definitely!

[Barbara Szczesniak]

I've never tried origami. Although it would probably help me today, I need to add this to the list of things I will try once I retire and have time to spend. 📄

[Susan Waldrip]

Great topic, @Hana Kučerová! I don't really have a "3-D brain" but I used to do some of this as a kid and really enjoyed it -- total focus on one thing, relaxing, and rewarding. Like @Amanda Barber , I worked on a project to create a ton of cranes and I remember it was a lot of fun! Funny that many of us seem to have done some level of origami as kids, but as adults it's gone by the wayside; maybe a good thing to get back into to quiet the mind....

[Hana Kučerová]

@Susan Waldrip Hmmm, you are probably right.

[Shawn Doyle - ReleaseTEAM]

I've enjoyed origami.  I have a habit of rolling stray papers into straw-like shapes at restaurants.  I am trying to stop after someone suggested I might have a coke problem.