Over the years, the staff at Taro’s Origami Studio has taught a lot of different kinds of classes.  Sometimes people want custom corporate models taught, or sometimes people want origami made for guests on demand.  But recently at the Rockefeller University in Manhattan, we had the privilege of teaching a class simply for the love of learning something new.

The university, whose motto is “science for the benefit of humanity” had us over to give a quick lecture and presentations about the intersection of art and science.

1: The Lecture

To begin with the Taro’s team of Frank Ling and Jeff Raab spoke for about 15 minutes or so about the history of origami.  In fact the Taro’s team has an entire power point that they’ve perfected for events just like this.

The presentation covers everything from the different kinds of origami, to its origins and uses today in engineering and aerospace.

2: The Lesson

From there the Senior Teachers dove into the different folds in origami (there are a lot less than you think!), and started teaching simple models.

Many people are intimidated by origami when they are younger.  It is easy to see all the diagrams a bit like heiroglyphics, but in reality, by the end of the class everyone had finished several origami flowers and animals.  And they had also gained a better sense of how origami works and how it can be a lot of fun to fold.