Origami Sierpinski Tetrahedra Stage 4 (Modular Origami), originally uploaded by One Small Crease.

Chris Welsh’s Sierpinski Tetrahedron is Zen-like in its recursive intensity. Check out the Flickr photostream for the full effect.

Mobius, originally uploaded by HisCheapMoves.

Paper: Unknown 24lb. Flyer Paper (about 20″ x 8.5″)

A classic — the hard part is finding one-sided paper [rimshot].

This one is a bit old and battered. I folded the corrugations onto a couple different sheets of paper, then cut them into strips and reassembled them with some tape. The loop was made while the paper was flat, then the corrugations were put back in. It’s a bit tricky, especially at first.

Interlocking Concertina Towers, originally uploaded by HisCheapMoves.

Paper: Some dark-red metallic band bio (8.5″ x 11″)

When compressed, the profile looks like an exaggerated ‘S’. As it expands, the curves contract, eventually making a full circle. They interlock well.

This particular paper was colored the same on both sides; if I use something colored on one side only, each tower will be a different color.

Tower Trio, originally uploaded by HisCheapMoves.

Paper: Unknown 24lb. Flyer Paper (8.5″ x 11″)

I got a pack of about 100 sheets of five different types of “natural-toned” papers at an OfficeMax closeout. It was the house brand, so I don’t know who made it. The colors worked well for figures like these, makes them look carved.

These are cylinders. Each is made from a single sheet of paper, taped into a tube.

Corrugated Cooling Tower, originally uploaded by HisCheapMoves.

Paper: Hammermill 24lb. Flyer (8.5″ x 11″)

This is made from a basic corrugated sheet. The paper is flattened, and the short sides are joined with a strip of tape. The folds are then set again. The tendency for the folds to expand flares out the top and bottom, resulting in what people at my office described as “those nuclear plant things.”

I trimmed the edges with an xacto prior to taping… the regular squared ends can be interesting too.

Because of a religious ban on the artistic representation of the world around us, a lot of early Islamic art tended to be of a geometric nature — intricate patterns of tile resulting in a heady mix of design, color and mathematics. As it turns out,
there is more to these patterns than meets the eye. One day, I’ll make it to the Alhambra and get to witness some of this stuff in person.

It’s interesting to read this profile of Robert J. Lang in a publication as high-profile as the New Yorker. He was featured in Discover a few months back, which I think is pretty big-time already, but its readership is nowhere as heterogeneous. It’s a good profile, and I recommend visiting Lang’s site if you’d like to see some of the models referenced in the article.