Paper Cranes hanging from the ceiling at the World Trade Centre Memorial Museum, New York.
I am being stalked…around the globe…by paper cranes!
I know it sounds crazy, but paper cranes follow me wherever I go. I’ve hung out with them in New York, Sydney, Spain, Hawaii and ofcourse, Japan.
Doing a blog on colour, I decided to find out what these brightly coloured and beautiful paper cranes were all about?
I enlisted the help of expert origami craftsperson, Ikuko Satoh, who lives in Tokyo, Japan, and asked her a few questions about my brightly coloured, albeit, stalking friends…
When did you start origami?
Did you start because of the Japanese cultural tradition of origami? Or just because you wanted to?
“I don’t remember specifically when I started.
It must’ve been when I was in kindergarden?
Of course, for intricate ones, you learn as you get older, but the basic ones (like cranes, ball, flowers, samurai) you just sort of pick up.
In Japan…kids learn how to make them the same way one might be given some crayons and start drawing.
Would you call that tradition?
Some get hooked on them, some don’t, but I would say again, it’s like drawing/coloring.
Nobody really dislikes them and nobody really has to say: “Teach me origami” at the very beginning.”
What is the significance of the colours in the origami paper? If any?
“You can get solid color ones in a set (like 2 same colors in a set of dozen colors, with always a gold and silver inside).
This would be standard.
Nowadays, you can find a variety of designed/printed ones.
Japan is starting to emphasize the traditional whatnots more then, say, 20 years ago – probably because of trying to catch up to the West (or ‘westernization’) has been pretty much accomplished and now, the Japanese are feeling more need to not let our culture escape away.
Strictly my opinion, but there’s more emphasis on cultural artwork than ever before, everywhere, and origami is not an exception.”
Why don’t I ever see black or white paper cranes? Are they always in colour?
“Good point! No black and white in anything, as in most countries, they are funeral colours.”
Are there specialist suppliers that you have to get the paper from in Japan?
“No, you can get them anywhere, even in convenience stores.”
(I want to add my two cents here…I find this totally amazing! Convenience stores? “I’ll have a bag of chips, a KitKat and a packet of origami paper.” I love Japan!)
Why are there always paper cranes at Japanese temples? What is their significance?
1000's of paper cranes at Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto, Japan.
“Cranes represent long life.
There is a proverb that says Cranes live 1000 years and turtles live 10,000 years.
So, the bunch of cranes that you’re probably referring to in your question, is a stack made of 1000 cranes, each folded with the wish or prayer for someone to recover from an illness or injury or something of that sort.
(Another place you often see the bunches of cranes is in hospital rooms)
It started that way but nowadays we see them at ballgames, etc, presumably used as a well-wish to win games.
Sometimes we find people standing in streets asking for people to please fold a crane, to support some kind of charity, etc.,
It might be similar to lighting a candle in church, or wearing a peace bracelet.
Of course, one single person might fold 1000 cranes, but more often then not, a 1000 cranes will be a show of the many number of (people’s) thoughts into the wish/prayer.”
Paper cranes...a close up
What colours do you most prefer working with in origami?
“Me? Personally I like soft colors. There are sets with pastel sort of colors with delicate, not too flashy designs on them.”
There you have it! I still don’t know why paper cranes are stalking me…but they are a beautiful and traditional part of Japanese culture…so I’ll let them…and maybe I’ll even start making some of my own!
Tags: Colour, Japan, Paper
Colour Theory 