Reimagination of paper

One of the threads we explore and try to embody here at Laughing Tree is that of ‘Reimagination.’ To us, this word connotes an approach to life that involves breathing new life into familiar or forgotten things. From the simple act of putting to creative use things most people tend to discard, to the more subtle process of extracting and recombining ideas and motifs from the past into new works of art, reimagination is about recognizing the tremendous wealth all around us, all the time.

Today at Worldchanging, I came across a most fascinating and in-depth review of the book, Unfolded – Paper in Design, Art, Architecture and Industry, by Petra Schmidt and Nicola Stattmann (Amazon). Paper is something so ubiquitous that it’s exceedingly easy to ignore its massive creative potential. However, the artists and engineers highlighted in this book have broken through such a crystallized perspective and really seem to embody a spirit of reimagination in their highly inventive and diverse paper applications.

“The humble material can turned into a dramatic temporary installation in an art gallery but it can also be used to build a school, delicately cut it evokes a fairy-tale world, combined with electronics it’s a breathing shirt. Give paper to Japanese engineers and they’ll plan an origami paper plane that can return to Earth from space. Paper can be as rough or as aerial as artists and engineers need it.”

I hope that you will check out this review and, even better, the book itself and feel inspired to reimagine even the most seemingly forgettable aspects of your world. What’s in your trash can that might find a new life on your wall? Did these applications spur any further paper reimaginations for you? We’d love to hear all about it.

-Adam