Centerfold Convention in Ohio Sponsored by Local Area Group

OrigamiUSA is pleased to provide detailed information about the upcoming Centerfold Convention being organized by the regional group CAPS (Capital Area Paper Shapers) in Columbus, Ohio.  This is not an OrigamiUSA event, but many of our members will be attending.  See you there!

Note from the Organizer

Hello all!

Many of you already are aware of our upcoming Origami convention Aug 20-22 2010 in Columbus, Ohio, and many have already pre-registered.

We now have online registration available and are taking full registrations.

All the information is at http://www.ohiopaperfolders.com/convention.html , but here is a quick overview:

CenterFold Convention is the first origami convention to be held in Columbus, Ohio. This convention is not set up to be an expo. There will be some things for sale but this is primarily a social and instructional event. Our goal is to provide a warm and hospitable place to share your interest in this wonderful art with others who share the same interest. We are hopeful that having a convention in the midwest will draw attendees who might otherwise not be able to attend an origami convention.

OrigamiUSA has kindly donated over 500 packages of paper.

We will be doing class scheduling online starting in May, with the intention of doing our best to adjust supply to meet demand.  I.e. classes with a lot of interest will have larger rooms and will be repeated.

Note that space is limited to 250 people this year, and we had over 130 pre-registered as of April 1...so if you are interested in attending do not delay!

See you all in New York in June!

-Monica Salisbury.

Guests

Guests of honor are:

David Brill and Tomoko Fuse.

Recently, Eric Gjerde, Charles "Doc" Santee, James Peake and Robert Lang have offered to add their talents and skills to our efforts. We are pleased they will be joining us in Columbus.

At this time the schedule of classes has not been set but we are planning to have classes which should appeal to all folding skill levels, and class registration will be on-line, well in advance of the convention. We intend to adjust the size and number of each class based on demand so people are not blocked out of classes. In addition we have arranged for some classroom workshops with professional paper marblers to give those who are interested an opportunity to learn more about this art to further enrich their skills as artists. We will have a presentation by members of the Paper Circle, an Ohio based studio and gallery which has focused exclusively on paper arts. We have arranged to have a screening of Between The Folds, Vanessa Gould's fine documentary. If you haven't seen this yet, please include it in your schedule, it's a wonderful film. We have an exhibit planned which will open the beginning of August at the Cultural Arts Center in downtown Columbus, Ohio. We're very excited about the exhibit because it should reach far more people than just those who attend the convention.

The convention will run the 20th, 21st, and 22nd of August, 2010.

We will have some scheduled activities on Friday, probably after dinner and before late night folding gets under way. (As those of you who have attended origami conventions before know, there will be an area available through the night for those who wish to burn the midnight oil and fold in the wee small hours.) There is an open invitation to all who attend the convention to dine at the hotel restaurant on Saturday evening. We are not having a banquet but all who wish to "dine in" Saturday evening are welcome and it should be a nice evening. Sunday there will be classes and the convention will end late Sunday afternoon.

Costs/general rules

 a. The registration fee for this convention is $85 per person for the weekend for payments received before May 20th, $95 for payments received between May 20th and July 20th, $100 for payments received between July 20th and Aug 1 and $110 for payments made after Aug 1 or at the door. These are the all in cost (except for accomodations). i.e. if you register and send payment before July 20th your total cost is $85 plus minor material fees for some classes, and your accomodations.

 b. If you have someone who will attend with you for medical assistance there is no charge for their attendance.

 c. All minor children(of non-driving age) must be accompanied by an adult. Non-participating adults who attend with their children will be charged a fee of $40.

 d. The registration fee does not include accommodations at the hotel. (Information below)

Note that this year we will be limiting attendance to 250 persons, and as of Mar 15th we are already at 120 pre-registered - so don't delay!

Live registration and on-line payment gateway will be online on 3/26, but you can pre-register now.

The registration fee includes:

 a. Attendance at the 3 day convention

 b. A t-shirt (picture not available at this time)

 c. A convention program (this is a book of diagrams of origami models)

 d. A tote bag which will contain paper to use for the various classes as well as a pen and note paper.

 e. Classes - a few classes may have additional material costs

Hotel

After careful consideration of a variety of locations and services we have decided to hold the event at The Ramada Plaza Hotel & Conference Center, 4900 Sinclair Road, Columbus, Ohio (http://www.ohiopaperfolders.com/convention.html). Their numbers are 614-846-0300, 1-800-2-RAMADA and FAX 614-847-1022.

Be sure to mention that you are attending the Centerfold Origami Convention. The room rate is $79 per night plus taxes. Please reserve your hotel room before 7/30/2010 to ensure this rate and availability. Reservations may be cancelled 24 hours before the event with a full refund.

Note that this is a very nice hotel specializing in small conventions. There is a full restaurant in the hotel with very reasonable menu prices. The menu includes vegetarian selections. The hotel includes a lounge, pool, fitness center and much more.

Marbling workshop

The marbling workshops will have an additional charge of $40 for materials. Attendance in the marbling workshops is limited due to space so if you think you'd be interested please register early.

The workshop fee will be refundable at 100% up until 2 weeks before the convention begins, 50% from there up until the convention starts. Once the convention date arrives only 10% of the registration fee will be refunded. This does not apply to cancellation of your convention registration.

The class schedule will be posted in May (provided that the volunteer teachers get their class information submitted in a timely fashion). Scheduling for classes will be online, access will be provided by way of a paid registration code. Schedule changes can be made throughout the time prior to the convention. The schedule will become set Monday, August 16th, 2010. Walk up registrants will have to settle for space availability in classes.