Museum Visitors To Make 1,000 Origami Cranes For Peace July 27

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — Running through Sept. 22 at the Museum of Fine Arts, 255 Beach Drive N.E., St. Petersburg, “Above the Fold: New Expressions in Origami," includes massive works of paper art suspended from the gallery ceiling and spanning hundreds of feet across the walls.

Nearly 20 paper-based works of arts of nine international artists feature dramatic sculptures, large-scale installations, and conceptual works that express contemporary, social, political, aesthetic and cultural dialogues.

"Above the Fold" is the first traveling exhibition to bring a group of origami installations
and conceptual sculptures from around the world to North American audiences. The
MFA is the second-to-last museum to host the exhibition before it concludes in 2020.

Artists include Erik Demaine and Martin Demaine (Canada/USA), Vincent Floderer (France), Miri Golan (Israel), Paul Jackson (UK/Israel), Dr. Robert J. Lang (USA), Yuko Nishimura (Japan), Richard Sweeney (UK) and Jiangmei Wu (China/USA).

Origami, literally meaning “paper folding,” has evolved from a Japanese craft into a
highly expressive, global art form. The largest work in the exhibition is a paper sculpture measuring 7 feet tall and 20 feet long created by Wu, assistant professor in design at Indiana University Bloomington.

“Paper is a fascinating medium, and we’re excited to present these brilliant
contemporary works of art, in such an immersive way, that reflect how origami has
evolved as an art form,” said Executive Director Kristen A. Shepherd. “This is one of
the MFA’s most ambitious installations, and our guests will be able to experience
origami as never before.”

In addition to the paper art, the MFA exhibit will incorporate artwork from its collection, such as Japanese woodblock prints and other local loans. The gallery will also include a paper-folding interactive space for guests to create paper cranes and other paper patterns. Guests can take the cranes home or leave them on display in the space for the duration of the exhibition.

The ones left will be sent to the Children’s Peace Monument in Hiroshima, Japan. The MFA’s goal is to send 1,000 cranes to be placed at the peace monument commemorating Sadako Sasaki and all the children lost to the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.

To that end, the museum will host a folding party Saturday, July 27 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. with an instructional workshop from 10 a.m. to noon.

During this event, student ambassadors from Takamatsu, St. Petersburg's Sister City
in Japan, will teach attendees how to create folded cranes. In Japan there is a longstanding tradition that a person who folds 1,000 cranes will be granted his or her deepest
wish.

In 1955, a young girl named Sadako Sasaki folded more than 1,000 cranes as she
tried to recover from leukemia caused by exposure to the radiation from the atomic
bomb dropped on Hiroshima in 1945. Though she did not recover, Sasaki's story of hope
spread throughout the world, and today the folded crane is a well-known symbol of
peace. The folding party is free with general admission.

Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, Friday and Saturday; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday; and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. Regular admission is $20 for adults; $15 for those 65 and older, Florida educators, college students and active-duty military; and $10 for students 7 and older. Children under 7 and museum members are admitted free.