Folded Flowers

...Otherwise known as origami.

So if you have ever been to American Museum of Natural History in New York City around Christmastime, you would have probably seen the Origami Holiday Tree. Here is a link to last year's Origami Holiday Tree (2012). For those of you that do not know of this tradition, every year the AMNH erects a Christmas tree, which has been decorated with origami creations to fit a theme; moreover, the origami is folded by volunteers, who undertake the project in July, while the tree is up and ready for display by November. Last year's theme was Museum Collections. If you are ever in NYC around Christmastime, I would really recommend going to see it~

But seeing as it is most certainly not Christmas (nor even near Christmastime), you may be wondering why I'm talking about the Origami Tree now. If you clicked on the first link above, you would have known that the annual Origami Holiday Tree is an event produced by OrigamiUSA, a society "devoted to origami, the art of paperfolding" as their site will tell you. In any case, OrigamiUSA holds an annual convention which, this year, was at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT). This year's convention was held from June 21 to June 24, and I was lucky to have been able to go with my sister and see all the wonderful origami the convention had to offer, so I decided to share some of the floral related ones with you all. So (after a very lengthy introduction), without further ado, I present to you the OrigamiUSA Annual Convention of 2013.

Enjoy~~

Tried to take pics of the namecards for all the wonderful creations.

 

This was a really cool origami ball that lit up internally at different spots, as you might be able to tell from the three pictures--they're all of the same creation. Also if you can't see the card, it's called Rose Auditorium, designed by Uyen Nguyen and folded by Kailey Shara

How cool would it be to own a flower shop as like this?

A close-up of some of the flowers in the shop:

Money origami! Also, didn't get the artist--sorry!

In its entirety

Tea, for those so inclined--it was really cool because this artist folded origami out of tea bags, some of which can be seen in this picture

Reflections...

Feeling pretty zen at the moment, so here are some pictures I thought I'd share from while I was sitting in a van.

The reflection is of the opposite window of the van I was in--pretty nifty, eh? Ah, please ignore what I'm pretty sure is my finger in the corner of that first shot--amateur moment.

No Words, Just Pictures

Flowers of June

Happy June!

So it has been quite a while since my last post and I do apologize for that. To make up for that, today's post features several different flowers. What better way to welcome the arrival of June and of the summer season than to introduce the flowers of June?

During the Middle Ages, the twelve months of the year were governed by agricultural affairs of the farmer, the chores of his wife, and the personal pleasures and relaxations of both. For that reason, along with the astronomical, meteorological, and agronomical information provided, the calendar was of the utmost importance to the farmer, more so than to anyone of any other trade. After the Middle Ages, in the flirtatious 18th century and more poetically-inclined 19th century, Western calendars began adopting flowers and plants for each month, based on seasonal appearances.

The flower for June was the honeysuckle which, in a medieval mode of communication known as the Language of Flowers, was also used to symbolize devotion and affection, generosity and gaiety, or a bond of love. 

Common Name: Honeysuckle

Genus: Lonicera

However, it is not only throughout Europe, but Asia as well, where flowers are assigned to each month. In China, for example, a deep devotion and appreciation has been paid to flowers since the early ages and symbolic meaning given to each flower since antiquity. The Chinese have their own flower calendar, and for June, the flower is the pomegranate blossom. The pomegranate blossom was believed to be a symbol of progeny and prosperity, while the pomegranate itself was used as a symbol of a hopeful future.

Common Name: Pomegranate Blossom

Genus: Punica

Chinese: 石榴 (shíliú) [Not sure what Romanization the book used--I've used Mandarin pinyin]

Similarly, the Japanese have their own flower calendar. Japan in itself is a culture steeped with an appreciation for nature, with flower lore and legend permeating Japanese literature, and symbolic flower art such as the arrangement of flowers, Hana-ike (flower arrangement) or Ikebana (arranged flowers), both of which date back to over a thousand years old, embedded in everyday life. One of the oldest and most popular card game in Japan--Hana-garuta--has 48 cards, twelve of which represent the Japanese flowers of the months. For June, the peony flower was assigned. Besides being the flower of June, the peony also stood for gay life and prosperity, as well as a happy marriage and virility. 

Common Name: Peony

Genus: Paeonia

Japanese: 牡丹 (botan)

That's all for today--I hope everyone has a wonderful June and a beautiful summer! Until next time then!

Many thanks to my wonderful wonderful sister for getting me the book I used for research for this post~~

Sources

Lehner, Ernst and Johanna Lehner. Folklore and Symbolism of Flowers, Plant and Trees. Mineola: Dover      Publications, 2003. Print.