My name is David Derudas. I was born in October 1970 in Sassari, Sardinia, where I currently live. I began practicing Origami at the age of eleven, inspired by the "flapping bird"—a model that an elderly man used to fold and give to all the children in a square where my mother would take my brothers and me to play.
In 1994, I joined the Centro Diffusione Origami (C.D.O.), and my collaboration with this association has continued ever since. In 1997, the C.D.O. dedicated a special issue of the "Quaderni del Quadrato Magico" series to me, titled "L’Origami per David."
Between 1998 and 2001 I have been invited to several prestigious international events:
September 1998: Internationaler Papierfaltkongress (Origami Munich Association) in Munich.
May 1999: "Les Rencontres de Mai" organized by the French association (M.F.P.P.).
August 1999: The 5th Origami Tanteidan Convention in Tokyo, thanks to the Issei Yoshino Fund—a scholarship established in memory of the great master and creator of the famous T-Rex skeleton.
September 1999: The International Origami Butterfly Exhibition (Origami Sverige), where I tied for first place with Lionel Albertino; the prize was an invitation to the second Swedish convention.
September 2000: Guest of the Spanish association (A.E.P.) in Zaragoza. On that occasion, the A.E.P. published a monograph on wet-folding titled "La técnica del papel humedecido," which included a section dedicated to my work.
June 2001: Special guest at the OrigamiUSA convention.
September 2001: Guest of the British Origami Society (BOS) for their convention.
In addition to creating models, I have previously written articles for Q.M. (Quadrato Magico), the bulletin of the Italian association.
Out of natural curiosity, I am drawn to all genres and styles of Origami, though I certainly have my preferences: I am not particularly fond of "hyper-complex" Origami. On the contrary, I deeply appreciate the simple, essential style seen in authors such as Luigi Leonardi, Michael LaFosse, and Akira Yoshizawa. Above all, I love their natural gift for synthesis.
Significant influences on my artistic development include David Brill—specifically the impact of his "structural" three-dimensionality, achieved not through simple shaping but through a genuine construction process—and Herman Van Goubergen, whose clear, original style and brilliant ideas I find captivating.
The most important thing for me is that my models evoke emotion. If I achieve this, I can generally communicate that feeling to others, which is fundamental to me. Techniques and materials are merely tools used according to one’s own natural inclination.
For this reason, when recreating natural subjects, I do not look for real-life references like photos or drawings; in fact, I avoid them, relying instead on my memories. I trust the images etched in my mind that provide an immediate essence of what I am observing. The human brain naturally filters the core characteristics that draw us to nature (the lightness of a butterfly’s wings, the gaping mouth of a hippo, the aggression of a cobra), setting aside the secondary details. I enjoy following this instinct, which seems so characteristic of the human soul.
Since 2002, my participation in major international events has become less frequent, and origami has taken a more personal place in my life. While I devote less time to it now, it remains a passion that I have never abandoned.