CREATIVE OUTLOOK: CREATIVITY WITH PAPER

From Art To Packaging

by Marion K. Allman, The Art Institute of Cincinnati

Paper. The simplest of all forms - flat, barren, uninteresting, a real challenge. AHHH... but with imagination we can turn paper into an illustration via sculpture, pop-up or an environmentally friendly package design that stops consumers in their tracks. Paper is also a huge marketplace for designers who enjoy working in three-dimension.

The History, The art of papermaking began in China over 2,000 years ago, but it spread to Japan by the sixth century A.D.

It’s hard to imagine getting through school without making paper dolls, airplanes, sailor hats or cootie catchers. Origami, the simplest form of 3-D art became an integral part of Japanese culture. Paper butterflies symbolized the bride and groom at weddings.

Legend says that a person who makes a thousand origami cranes will live a long life. The legend took a new meaning in 1955, when Sadako Sasaki, a 12-year-old girl who was exposed to radiation during the bombing of Hiroshima, contracted leukemia. While in the hospital, she tried to fold 1,000 cranes but died before she could complete the task. Sadako’s statue now stands in Hiroshima’s Peace Memorial Park, where it is decorated every year with thousands of origami cranes, folded by children from around the world, as a symbol of peace.

In the last 25 years, new materials, new methods and new ideas have transformed the traditional world of origami on both sides of the Pacific. The simple and stylized animals of the past, which relied as much on the viewer’s imagination as the folder’s skill, have been joined by bugs and beasts bristling with anatomically correct legs and teeth. Some folders are exploring new subject matter, such as elaborate cuckoo clocks or working Swiss army knives. Others venture into the abstract world of assembling spectacular interlocking polyhedra or tile mosaics or defying straight-line geometry to sculpt graceful curves. Modern origamists’ designs range from gorgeous to whimsical. Today, even computers are now being used by origami designers. However, every design produced, regardless of its complexity began, as a simple sheet of paper and can be folded without cutting or gluing.

Paper sculpture, for example, has always been popular as an illustration media. Since paper has a ‘memory,’ it will retain form. Thus, a lasting sculpture can be created. In recent times, the paper industry has introduced handmade papers that feature textures and patterns that give an artist more creative options. These papers are found in local craft or art stores (An example is the ‘Turtles’ paper sculpture. The artist chose to use an embossed paper for the turtle’s limbs.) After the piece is completed, the 3-dimensional art is then photographed using a light source to create shadows to enhance the depth. Paper sculpture is a media that can be chosen in all areas where an illustration could be used. It is also taught, as part of the curriculum, in five art colleges in the U.S.. Recently, there has even been an interest in the ‘fine art’ arena. Paper sculpture art is completed and placed in a box frame or mounted directly to the wall.

Pop-ups. Have you studied the book stores lately? Pop-up books are flourishing not only in the children’s book area but for adults too. Everything from fairy tales to science subjects are being covered. In an era that is dominated by computers, it goes to prove that people still like the interaction of feeling something in their hands. People like the sense of awe when they open a book and experience the surprise of an object jumping out.

The greeting card industry is experiencing a rebirth of the pop-up. Victorian Valentine cards ‘from the old days’ are now making a come back, along with modern day themes. A new addition to this market is the innovative ‘Swing’ cards, produced in London, England that not only pop-out but swing too! They are ‘keepers’ - not the type of card one would throw away.

One sees products encased in paper packages that twist, twirl and interlock.

Have you noticed lately how the container is no longer just a box? That the packaging of a product has become as interesting as the product itself? That paper is manufactured in various weights - some rigid others flexible, some molded or cylindrical? Perhaps it’s time to adventure out into the world of packaging - next time you are out shopping notice everything from how products are boxed to paper shopping bags (or containers). They are becoming increasingly more innovative.

Primarily packages are designed to protect, store and transport goods, but it is a known fact that consumers react immediately to package shapes and are influenced by them when making a buying decision.

Paper engineering - structural design - has become an exciting profession. The cosmetic field was one of the first to deliver challenging and beautiful shapes. Designed for predominately women, they were meant to capture the passion of the product, but now we see innovative designs and shapes in all areas of retail.

Contrary to other forms of advertising, Package Design is totally physical - the joy is touching it - caressing it! It can be purely seductive. Many have literally become art pieces.

How the box or bag opens can be an adventure. Panera has an interesting box that is interlocking to hold their bagels. Not just a container - it is a handy carryall. Bath & Body Works has an fascinating box that twists and twirls when opening. One might be tempted to buy anything just to get the container! The same holds true of a card or book that pops-out to greet you.

As our culture becomes more in tune to the environment, we will begin ‘thinking green’ and develop packages that are environmentally friendly. This is already happening in the fast-food business. Using recycled paper packaging from post-consumer waste is the way of the future. Paper is replacing containers that were formerly made of polystyrene without compromising protection of the product. Even more challenging for the artist/designer is creating packages that are sturdy and can be adapted for repeated use or for a secondary use after the initial product is consumed.

So, have you come to the conclusion that the flat, uninteresting, barren piece of white paper may open up an exciting key to your future as a designer? Did you ever imagine that paper would lead to such a diverse and vital career? The future holds promise to all designers and artists who still love to touch, feel and create in the three-dimension.