Spherical forms from PAPER!

In the 3rd workshop with Richard Sweeney, he showed us a technique that made it possible to make spherical forms from flat paper. Similarly to the last workshop we were allowed as much paper as we wanted and we could use any for of adhesive to hold our sculptures together. By creating triangles with curved tabs, you can connect them all forming a ball shaped piece. Here is the piece I worked on in the Session and some extra work I did at home using the triangle skill.

Workshop work.

1) I used small equilateral triangles, each side being 5cm, to create this piece. I kept the tabs on the outside and stapled them to keep them secure.

2) I like how the tabs are raised from the flat surface of this piece. It adds the effect that maybe something is missing and it isn't yet complete.

3) Maybe next time I will use a different adhesive so that the edges are smoother. I could also try leaving it partly open and not a fully finished sphere. 

Work at Home.

1) I used larger triangles this time as I thought it would make the model easier to make. I used equilateral triangles of 15cm, three times larger than the previous design. 

2) I used spray mount to secure the tabs this time, which was much messier yet leaves a neater final piece. I also left the tabs inside the sculpture as apposed to outside like the workshop piece. 

3) Although it is technically a sphere, It has many edges and angles as it is made up of triangles. I think this adds a nice effect and if photographed properly, it would show some nice shadows.

4) The edges/seams of the triangles are really smooth and neat. This was one of the positives of using spray mount, because it needed time to set and you could alter it easily yet it holds well.

5) This image shows the scale of the finished piece in comparison to an average size glue stick. The glue stick comes to about half the height of the spherical piece.

6) Here are my two pieces together. As similar as they are (made using the same technique) they are also extremely different. I like how just by altering whether the tabs are inside or out it changes the whole piece all together.

As well as creating these beautiful spherical shapes, I also thought to use the leftover paper too. They also have repeat patters, which is the main aim of the brief, however their repeats are what is missing. By manipulating them and using techniques learnt previously, I tried to create something unusual from these cut offs.

By twisting the cut off sheet, I created quite an interesting piece with smaller viewing holes and spaces.

I'm going to continue working with spherical shapes and see if i can develop something more unique to be hung in the atrium.