People in History

Lillian was fascinated when discovered the flapping bird.

From 1950 she started the origami movement in USA.

From 1951 she corresponded with Robert Harbin, Gershon Legman, Ligia Montoya, and Akira Yoshizawa.

In 1958 she opened the origami centre with 25 people in the class and published a newsletter " The Origamian ". 

In 1959 she founded the Friends of The Origami Centre of America.

In 1994 the Friends group became the current OrigamiUSA in New York.

She died at the age of 94.

Her publications included:-

Folding paper puppets (1962)

Folding paper toys (1963)

Folding paper Masks (1965)

In A.D. 105  Cai Lun presented the Emperor with a fine quality paper (in Western Han Dynasty).   The inner bark of the mulberry tree was used for fibre.  Later they found that the fibres good for paper-making could be obtained by pounding rags, hemp rope, and old fishing nets into a pulp.

First President of British Origami Society, He brought the western world into greater appreciation of the art. He was also a great magician. 

He published a book titled "Paper Magic" in 1956.

He appeared in TV origami presentation in 1971. 

The Atomic bomb was dropped in Hiroshima Aug 6, 1945 when she was 2 years old.

At 11, Sadako was the fastest runner in her class. She collapsed in a race and was diagnosed with leukaemia, a cancer of the blood.

She tried to fold a thousand cranes hoping that her wish for world peace could be granted. By the time she died she had folded 644 cranes. Her friends folded the remaining cranes for her funeral. Afterwards they formed a club and began raising money for a monument.

The Peace monument was unveiled in Hiroshima Park 1958. 

Every year people from all over the world send paper cranes to the Park on August 6th --- the Peace Day.

An artist, a lady origami master - A founder of Origami USA and a friend of Lillian Oppenheimer.  She was born in London in 1921.

Since the paper folding was introduced into the western world she was well respected as one of the 'origami pioneers'.

Florence Temko was a mother and housewife in the 1950s. She developed her interest in paperfolding. Gradually she enjoyed teaching and writing books about origami. She also demonstrated origami in libraries, schools , museums and TV shows.

She was listed in "Who's Who of American Women".

She presented hundreds of hands-on programs in educational and industrial organizations including the Metro Museum of Art in New York, the Children's Museum in Boston, The Advertising Club, The Art Teacher Association and American Craft Fair etc.

In 1986 Mingei International Museum in San Diego, USA received her generous donation of 600 origami books.

In 2003, with her as the consultant, there was an Origami Masterworks Exhibition of 200 objects by over 40 world famous paperfolders .

She travelled in over 30 countries looking for traditional paper folk crafts ideas. Through origami she made friends around the world. They were from Canada, China, England, France, Holland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Switzerland etc.

Her books included : Origami Magic, A Thousand Cranes, Paper Jewelry, Folk Crafts for World Friendship.

She was very proud of the book - Paper Pandas and Jumping Frogs - published by China Books 1986.

Valuable references are recorded in this book e.g. - Story of paper; History of Paper Folding and how to teach paper folding.

She was 88 when she died of heart failure.

Mr. Yoshizawa may be the most prolific paper folder in the history of origami .... his interest in Origami began at the age of 3 when he received a gift of a paper boat. 

While working in a steel mill at the age of 27 he folded papers more seriously. He held exhibitions, gave lectures and was often reported by the media in Japan.In 1955, his achievement in origami came to the attention of the art world after the exhibition of his work in Holland organized by Dr. Gershon Legman. In 1959 his origami artwork was presented in an exhibition by Lillian Oppenheimer in New York.

From 1966, on behalf of the Japan Foreign Ministry, he held lectures of origami in over 30 countries in Australia, Asia, America and Europe, promoting good wills among nations. In 1970 the Reader's Digest magazine reported his outstanding work in origami.

In 1986, in recognition of his over 20 years contribution to the mutual understanding among nations of the world, he received the Foreign Minister Prize. From the next year to 1989 he attended the Japan Week in Hang Chow, China. In 1989, commemorating the 90th anniversary of Japanese immigrant in Peru, he lectured at the World Origami Exhibition with his origami artworks.

He published over 25 books including:- Life Affluent origami; Origami Museum 1 & 2; Origami Reader 1 & 2; Creative origami; Art of origami, Beautiful origami and Joyful origami for mother & child. He developed new folding techniques and created hundreds of new models including fish, birds and animals. In Japan, he was declared as a national treasure.

He often hoped that he could help to bring peace to the world through origami. As an origami artist he became an Ambassador for Japanese culture and World Peace. 

He died on his birthday, March 14, 2005. He was 94.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=29&v=GqH9eVdOI4M 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=29&v=hBWspmCzYyg 

Born in the Philippines, Dr. Shen studied Divinity in the University of Chicago, USA.. Before migrating to California in 1994 he was the head of Chung Chi College, Chinese University of Hong Kong.

As a child, he learned paper folding from parents ( e.g. glider, waterbomb and boat etc). His father bought him several books including "The art of Chinese paper folding " by Maying Soong.

When working in church camps, he discovered that origami could be a valuable medium for intercultural understanding and creative expression. He was inspired by Jack Skillman who introduced him to the Origami Centre of America. 

He wrote articles on origami with special interest in creating models of utensils, furniture and geometric shapes. His origami creations are simple and aesthetically beautiful.

When working in church camps, he discovered that origami could be a valuable medium for intercultural understanding and creative expression. He was inspired by Jack Skillman who introduced him to the Origami Centre of America. He wrote articles on origami with special interest in creating models of utensils, furnitures and geometric shapes. His origami creations are simple and aesthetically beautiful.

He was the honourable consultant of the Chinese (HK) Origami Society since 1991. His work was exhibited and published in UK, USA, Hong Kong , Japan and Singapore etc. In 1970 the Reader's Digest (Chinese) written about him and the magic of origami . The British Origami Society published a booklet about his work on 1982.

He was 73 when he died of lung cancer.

Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2013 

From: The Origami Mailing List 

2010 A lister asked him to send a short autobiography & he did :

WHO IS DAVID LISTER?

I was born on 18th April, 1930, in Grimsby, then a large fishing port on

the east coast of England on the south side of the estuary of the River

Humber. I was educated at local schools and was then an undergraducate at

Downing College in the University of Cambridge, where I studied history

(mainly British Constiutional History) for two years and then English law

for one year.

Returning to Grimsby I joined a local firm of solicitors (lawyers) as an

articled clerk (apprentice) and qualified as a solicitor in September,

1956. In the same month I married M whom I had known all my life. 

In 1956 I became an assistant solicitor in the same firm and became a

partner in 1962. I remained in the same firm until I retired in April, 1990.

I learnt a few traditional paperfolding models from my father and one or

two other people. I was particularly attracted to paperfolding without

cutting and began to collect examples of folds. At the time I was unable to

find any books about the subject. In 1953 I met a young man who was able

to teach me how to fold the Chinese Junk and I made step folds of the model.

This reignited my interest in folding and I began again to search for books

on the subject. 

However, it was not until April, 1956 that I found ?The Art

of Chinese Paperfolding? by Maying Soong. Two years later I found Robert

Harbin?s ?Paper Magic? in a local shop and then one of two book in English

by Isao Honda. Eventually I wrote to Robert Harbin and received an

encouraging reply.

In 1963, Sam Randlett?s ?The Art of Origami? became available in England.

I then wrote to Lillian Oppenheimer in New York and started corresponding

with her. I also bought a number of books about paperfolding from her and

subscribed to The Origamian.

In 1964 Lillian Oppenheimer sent Iris Walker, who lived (and still lives)

at Hull on the other side of the River Humber, to sixteen people from

England who were in touch with the Origami Center. I immediately replied.

It was from this group that the Origami Portfolio Society was formed by

Sidney French in August 1965.

Lillian Oppenheimer?s daughter, Rosaly Evnine lived in London and every

year Lillian flew across the Atlantic to visit her daughter and

grandchildren.. In April, 1966, Rosaly invited the members of the Origami

Portfolio Society to visit her home to meet Lillian. In this way the

members of the Origami Portfolio Society came to meet each other. They also

met Lillian Oppenheimer and Robert Harbin, who had also been invited. The

group met again at Rosaly?s home the following year, when Lillian again

visited her daughter. 

At this second meeting, it was suggested that a

formal paperfolding society should be founded.. During the summer, Sidney

French, Eric Kenneway, John Smith and I drew up a draft constitution.

Sidney French called a meeting to form the Society, the following September

at the Russell Hotel in London.. Here it was agreed to form the British

Origami Society.

From this the Society gradually grew in both numbers and in activities.

Sidney French became the Chairman and I became a member of the Council. I

replaced Sidney as Chairman after about three years. Then John French took

ove, while. I remained a member of the Council and acted as a general and

legal adviser, working closely with John Smith. I remained on the Council

for many years. Eventually I was made a Vice-President and continued

attending Council Meetings in this capacity until about 1997.when I began

to find it difficult. to travel.

For two or three years spring meetings of the Society continued to be held

at Rosaly Evnine?s home until the Society became too large to meet there.

The spring meetings were the held at the Vienna Caf?, off Baker Street in

London. They were later held in various hotels in London and became

residential meetings. It was suggested that there should also be meetings in

the autumn and for many years these took place at the Cobden Hotel in

Birmingham. I made a point of attending all the spring and autumn meetings

or conventions as we called them, not missing one until autumn 1996..

I have also attended many meetings abroad, especially in Germany and

Italy. I also attended the Second Meeting of Scientific Origami at Otsu in

Japan in 1994. In May, 2000, I visited Kyoto, Japan at the invitation of

Akira Yoshizawa. I was fortunate to meet Mr. Yoshizawa on many occasions

and also corresponded with him. On each of my visits to Japan I was also

able to meet Mr. Yoshihide Momotani and Mrs, Sumiko Momotani, with whom I

have corresponded for many years.. 

I attended the New York Conventions in

1995 and 1997.I also attended the West Coast Origami Meeting in San

Francisco, in 1997. In the 1990s I was a member of the private magazine,

FOLD, for which I wrote several long articles about paperfolding, only a

few of which have been published elsewhere. I have written many postings to

the Internet origami group, Origami-L and many of these pieces have been

posted on the British Origami Society web site. I hope to add many other

pieces and longer articles.

 I have many other interests apart from origami.

They include art and architecture, natural history, recreational

mathematics, astronomy, heraldry and flags, the history of playing cards,

knots, Arthurian history an legend, knots and string figures and mazes and

labyrinths. Whatever my interests, I buy books about them and have a large

private library which is a very useful resource.

In 1999 I suffered a sprain in my leg and have not been able to travel

very well. So I have missed two conventions of the British Origami Society

and have not been able to travel to conventions abroad.

Nevertheless, I am still deeply interested in all aspects of paperfolding

and spend much time corresponding with other paperfolders on the Internet.

David Lister.

13th April, 2010 

Thoki was a man of many talents. He has practised kirigami since 4 years old. He was also very interested in magic, origami, geometry, writing, drawings and film making. He worked hard to be a magician and wanted a name to conjure with, therefore changed his name: Thorkild Sondergard Jensen into: Thoki Yenn. 

He travelled around Europe to Magic Conventions and won prizes for Comic Conjuring in Paris, Amsterdam and Stockholm. He also won the Golden Ring prize in Magic Circle Denmark.After meeting Mrs. Lillian Oppenheimer in Copenhagen in 1958, origami became an important part of his life. He started the Dansk Origami Centre in 1991. He created many outstanding origami models including the famous Magic Rings and DNA.

He passed away at the age of 85.

To view Mr. Thoki Yenn's website, click here

He was a talented magician. Besides being a gifted origamist he was a knife thrower who used paper folding to calm his nerves. He also studied hypnotism and loved painting.

The German educator who introduced paper folding into the Kindergarten movement. He was the first person highly valued origami as the educational material.

He was Leo Nikolaevich, Count Tolstoy, the author of "War and Peace". His origami experience was mentioned by A B Goldenweiser in "Talks with Tolstoy", published by Horizon Press, New York. His famous essay "What is art?" in 1896 mentioned how the folded cockerels could flap their wings when the tails were pulled.

After learning many paperfoldings while travelling in Japan and China etc she settled down in South Africa. She complied her paperfolding collections for her grandchildren. Her book "Paper Toy Making" was published in England in 1937.

He was a poet born in Durban, the son of Margaret Campbell. In the preface he wrote for his mother's book he mentioned the fun of paper folding. He recognised his creative potential the very first time when the paper bird flapped its wings in his hand.

He was an Oxford mathematician and writer for the children. In 1889 he folded a fishing boat (probably the Chinese Junk) for the grandchildren of Queen Victoria. Later he learned how to fold paper pistols and taught them too.

He was a Cambridge graduate and the tutor of the children of Czar Nicholas II. By using paper folding he succeeded in winning the confidence of his withdrawn pupil - the Czarevitch  (Eric Kenneway - A paper folder in St Petersburg.)

He was the famous escape artist born in Budapest, Hungary and emigrated to USA. His original name was Erik Weisz. One of his tricks on stage was to transform a piece of paper into a flapping bird.

He was known to be the author of "Houdini's Paper Magic".

Maying published the book in 1948 -- The Art of Chinese Paper Folding for Young and Old ..... (=  Chinese Paper Folding for Beginners - Dover)

With models : Love Knot, paper cup, PinWheel, Paper ball (=Water Bomb), Chinese Knight’s Helmet, Easter Bunny, Flapping Bird etc.

The writer & philosopher invented many animal constructions and wrote the book - Amory Pedagogia in 1902, a humorous essay on origami.

As a child, his mother taught him some simple folds. About 10 years old he learned from a book how to fold a frog and a whale. Paperfolding books were hard to find. 

Born in Spain, he studied medicine in Valladolid. As a physician he visited Europe and America. He settled in Argentina in 1912 and practised as a physician in Buenos Aires. With further studies he became a dentist from 1921.In South America, he enjoyed demonstrating paperfolding to his friends. On their request, he wrote down folding instructions of his creations. Later they encouraged him to publish. He named paperfolding as "papiroflexia". His publications includes:

1938---Manuels 1,2,3 of Papirolas (to 1940)

1945---Papiroflexia Superior

1947---Six booklets "Papirolas Escolares"

1965---Papiroflexia Zoomorfica Vol. I & II

As a teacher in Bundaberg, he was inspired by Robert Harbin's TV origami presentation in 1971. 

He was educated in Kelvin Grove Teachers' Training College in Brisbane. He taught origami to selected students and often used folded models as rewards of merit.He mainly learned from books and ordered many from Origami USA. In 1972 he became a member of BOS and enjoyed entering models in competitions. He also exhibited his work at the Bundaberg Show. He has been interested in creating geometric shapes but his first creation was a belt buckle.

The Origami Master he admired most was Neil Elias.

 Arthur used origami in mathematical recreation and invented flexagons

He was a free-lance researcher and writer. He was the appointed Writer in Residence at the University of California from 1964 to 1965.  Started serious research into paper folding in 1945.

He complied the first Bibliography of paper folding in 1952.

Established links of paper folders between South America and Europe and North America.

He arranged the exhibition for Akira Yoshizawa at Amsterdam in 1955.

Started the foundation of origami movement which continues today by liaising with Robert Harbin and Lillian Oppenheimer.

1908 Born in Tokyo 1930.  Graduated from Tsuda College 1946 worked as a newswriter till 1965 in the Foreign News section of the Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK).

1965 She met Lilian Oppenheimer at New York World Fair and started developing friendships with American folders.

1967 She founded the Sosaku Origami Group which led to the transformation of the Japanese origami movement to the western style.

Countries visited on goodwill missions:

- USA in 1965, UK in 1974, Maxico in 1978, China in 1979, Taiwan in 1980, Italy in 1981, France in 1981, Singapore in 1982, USA in 1984.

She was highly successful in creating Japanese paper dolls. She died at the age of 91

She contributed to the Origamian and published many books including:-

--- Creative Life with origami

--- Origami for fun

--- The joy of origami (1985)

Frieda was Jewish and was born in Austria. She had Austrian qualifications in occupational therapy.

She used paperfolding as a therapy among mental patients in Belle Vue Hospital, New York. At the hospital she met Robert Neale who was a chaplain there. 

She was a close friend of Lillian Oppenheimer and they worked together to learn about and teach origami. They both spent considerable time visiting groups of old people, the Red Cross and Boy and Girl Scouts.

Their efforts eventually led to the formation of the Origami Center in New York in October 1958.

Frieda's work is described in Hokubei Shimpo, an English-language newspaper for Japanese, published in New York.

He became an art teacher in London schools on return from military service in the Royal Artillery in North Africa. While finding ways to help his pupil in crafts he discovered the "Art of Origami" by Sam Randlett and "Paper Magic " by Robert Harbin. 

Eric was an active member of the Origami Portfolio Society in UK and later in the British Origami Society. He was helpful in translating Japanese articles on origami. He was very skillful in folding portraits including Napoleon, Shakespeare and Confucius.

His publications included "Simple origami" published by David in 1970,

 "Origami in action" and "Complete Origami" by St. Martin's Griffin in 1987.

He was the first regional group coordinator for OUSA and was also responsible for producing the handbook for regional groups. Since 1986, he had been a regular contributor to FOLD --an origami amateur publication and became the organizing editor for a few years.

His contribution included many thoughtful articles and poetry. He taught English as an adjunct professor at a local college.

Paul combined his interest in origami with church sermons. He was a lay minister who used origami to teach and inspire children. He would fold 30-40 models and hand them to all the children so they would have something tangible to hold on to. He was always eager to teach or learn a model since he bought an origami book in early 1980s.

Paul was also known for writing several books, including a recent one of money folds.

As a builder in Baltimore, he was well known for folding money into letters and quacking birds. His building projects included bridges, piers, theatres, restaurants and factories.

From a former G.I. he learned the dollar bill bow tie with the framed picture of George Washington. Subsequently, he created a system of folding alphabets from money. In 1958 he was appointed as the honorary member of Origami Centre of USA.

His book - Folding Money Vol. 2 was published by Magic Inc. in Chicago

Father McNaul was a priest in the Episcopal Church. He made his living as a cost estimator for Applied Technology. 

He was an active paperfolder in the 1960's and a frequent contributor to the Origamian - former newsletter of OrigamiUSA. He devoted much of his time helping the Origami Centre to translate many Spanish origami works into English.

In 1973 his origami collection was donated to Stanford University which can be found in the East Asian Collection in the Hoover Institution. Everything is catalogued and divided into indexed folders by his friend, Mrs.Yoshiko Decker. 

This collection provides a resource to research origami in the 1950s and 1960s when modern origami was blossoming. The collection consists of 120 books, 15 binders of diagrams/ correspondence and folded models.