Origami Convention 2019 will be held at St. John's University, located in Queens, NY, June 22–25. U.S. residents must be current members of OrigamiUSA to attend the Annual Convention, but you can join when you register: join or renew your membership here. International (non-U.S.) attendees do not have to be members.

For more information about your trip to New York City, please click here for Travel Information or on the Travel menu item to the left.

Early registration for the Convention and housing at St. John's University is essential. Please click here for Registration Information and Housing Information or on the menu items to the left.

If you are interested in Volunteering, Teaching or Exhibiting at the 2019 Convention, please click here for Volunteering Information, here for Teaching Information, or here for Exhibition Information or on the menu items to the left and fill out the forms to let us know what you would like to do, teach or bring.

For the complete list of the times for Convention activities, please click here or on the Hours menu item to the left.

If you have some general questions, please contact us by email at admin [at] origamiusa.org or contact us in the Home-Office at 212-769-5635.

Venue

We’re back at St. John's University in Queens, New York, which is easily accessed from public transportation and easily navigable. The venue is handicapped-accessible and can be reached from handicap-accessible public transportation. The terrain is primarily flat, with a few inclined areas and minimal stairs to climb along the walking paths. For those who prefer not to walk, we will be providing three 5-seater golf carts traveling regularly between bus stops, parking and convention areas. To ensure that the carts are available when you need them—especially at o∞-hours when they may not be making a full circuit—you can request one by calling the Convention Hotline: 646-770-4907.

These are the primary convention areas:

  • St. Louise de Marillac Hall (Marillac or MAR): Hospitality, Banquet on Monday, and some classrooms
  • D'Angelo Center (DAC): Sales, Exhibition, Public Access and Teaching, and some classrooms
  • Tobin College of Business (TCB, formerly called Bent Hall): some classrooms
  • Sullivan Hall (SUL): some classrooms
  • Montgoris Dining Hall: meals for those who elect to dine at the school
  • Century Hall: Housing

See the Travel page for more information about location and access. There you will see several versions of the campus maps, showing MTA bus stops, major walking paths between the primary convention areas, and the routes assigned to the golf carts.

Convention Access for Guests not Attending Convention

On Friday, all are invited to all convention areas. On Saturday and Sunday, however, you must be registered as an Attendee to enter the Hospitality area. Current members who are not registered for Origami Convention 2019 are welcome to visit the Sales Areas or the Exhibition at any time. Free parking is available.

Parents or guardians who require access to the site to pick up or deliver members must be registered as Guardian/Aide and must be listed as a Guardian on the Attendee's registration form. Only one Guardian badge per underage attendee will be issued.

Non-members, including family and friends of members, may visit the public areas (Sales and Exhibition) on Saturday or Sunday from 10:00 am to 4:45 pm. Admission is free.

Local Car Service

We’ve made arrangements with Kelly’s Car Service to be our recommended local car service. If you need transportation to/from St. John’s for public transportation, restaurants, shopping, etc., please give them a call. Our contacts at St. John’s speak highly of them, and Kelly’s assures us that their rates for local trips are better than Uber, etc. If, however, you prefer to use Uber or Lyft, please remember to download the apps before you leave home.

See the Travel page under “Getting to St. John’s” for more details.

Downloadable Registration Forms

We strongly encourage you to fill out all registration forms online to ensure accuracy and timeliness of submissions. If, however, you would rather print out and mail your registration forms, you can download them here.

  • Mail-in registration for Convention is closed.

Return your completed registration and/or vendor forms to OrigamiUSA, 15 West 77 Street, New York,NY 10024-5192. If you include an email address, you will receive your registration confirmation by email. Otherwise, we will mail it to you.

Return your completed housing forms to Martha Winslow-Cole, 5222 Duck Springs Road, Attalla, AL 35954. Please include a self-addressed, stamped, business-size envelope if you want a written housing confirmation, or your email address if you would prefer an electronic confirmation. Note that "Sorry I can't Attend" kits are purchased through The Origami Source.

First-Timers

Considering attending Origami Convention for the first time? Get lots of helpful First Timer Information here. If you have some general questions, please contact us by email at convention-firsttimer-info [at] origamiusa.org or contact us in the Home-Office at 212-769-5635.

Registration Requirements for Exhibition, Teaching

As has long been the case, if you wish to teach or exhibit at Convention, you must register as an attendee (even if you are not taking classes). We highly encourage all attendees to register using the online system (you must be logged into your website account to do so). You can, however, register using downloadable paper forms via mail. In that case, though, it will take a few days for your registration to be processed before you will be able to register online for exhibition and/or teaching

On-Line Teaching Preview, Schedule and Model Menu

As classes are entered, they are set up in an online preview with photos. The final online schedule will also have pictures. More information here.

Volunteer System

Volunteering is a critical part of our convention. You can select your own tasks and time slots via our online Volunteer Sign-up System. See here for more information.

Suggest Classes

Is there a model you’d like to learn? Or are you a teacher looking for ideas? Check our Suggest Classes page.

Sorry Kit

Sorry Kits, Collections, and T-shirts for non-attendees are sold through The Origami Source. See here for more information.

Guardian Rules

Room capacities dictate that we must limit the number of guardians who accompany under-age children or people with disabilities. Each person in need of a guardian or aide will receive one Guardian badge that can be used by multiple people, one at a time. This means that if, for example, Mother wants to come on Saturday and Father on Sunday, they can each use the same badge. At least one of the Guardians must register using the main registration form. Remember that Guardians cannot join students in classrooms unless both are registered to attend classes.

Code of Conduct

OrigamiUSA is dedicated to providing a harassment-free conference experience and a respectful treatment of participants at every OrigamiUSA event. Please read our Code of Conduct, which applies to the Annual Convention, as well as all other OrigamiUSA events.

Volunteer Registration

If you are a NON-FOLDER who wishes to volunteer at the convention for two or more hours per day, you will still register as staff using the main registration form.

Annual Meeting and Voting

The Annual Meeting is an opportunity to learn more about our organization. The meeting takes place in two parts. The first part is held in the Hospitality Area from 12:15 pm–1:45 pm on Saturday and is used for voting only. An Election Committee member will be at the Information Desk to confirm your eligibility to vote and give you a ballot. For more information about our election process including our preferred use of proxy ballots, please visit the elections page or contact the Elections Committee at elections [at] origamiusa.org. The results of the election are announced at the end of the second part of the meeting.

The second part of the meeting is held on Saturday from 5:30pm–6:30pm. This includes reports from the Board and Operating Committee members on all the activities of OrigamiUSA. Come for the entire meeting and you will be eligible for a door prize!

Survival Kit

Everyone gets one—lots of paper and a variety of informative materials. Do you have any (non-commercial) information you would like us to include? Contact us in the Home-Office before the end of May.

Consignments

We’ve clarified the rules for consignments.

Other Activities

There are several activities going on during the convention organized by members. More information here.

The Origami Collection

The Origami Collection is our annual book publication. Every year OrigamiUSA publishes a book of diagrams for the latest creations by folders from around the world. It normally has in excess of 50 diagrams and 200–250 pages. You can order a printed copy or a PDF version (or both). For the PDF version or for pick-up of the printed copy at Convention, order it with your Attendee Registration. If you cannot attend, you can order the printed Collection (but not the PDF) through the "Sorry I Can't Attend" page.

T-Shirt Reservations

You can order T-shirts in advance, and they'll be waiting for you, size guaranteed, at The Origami Source. For pick-up at Convention, order them with your Attendee Registration. If you cannot attend, you can order T-shirts through the "Sorry I Can't Attend" page.

Airplane Contest

Check out this fun Sunday lunchtime event.

Convention Pros

Experienced convention attendees know to look for ribbons on name tags to help identify the wearer: First Timers in yellow, and Board Members and Convention Committee Members in red. We're looking for Convention Pros, people who've been coming to convention for years, and are willing to help if someone has a question. If you're interested in being a Convention Pro, please check the appropriate box on the registration form.

Convention Monday

Monday is a special day at Origami Convention 2019! It will be a full day of lectures, demonstrations and workshops. Previous topics have included: using origami in education or therapy, teaching origami, reading diagrams, jewelry making, wet folding, backcoating, folding miniatures, greeting cards, photographing origami, flower construction, decorating paper, diagramming, papermaking, preserving models, paper size determination, how to self-publish, developing regional groups, design and creativity.

In addition, we might have sessions on learning or improving the folding skills that will help you to move from simple to intermediate models, or from intermediate to complex. Saturday and Sunday continue to be a mix of models and techniques, but Monday will exclude classes which teach models using traditional origami paper. Individual classes may also require special materials fees.

The specific classes offered will, of course, depend on our volunteer teachers. Convention Monday will be what you make it! If you are interested in teaching or presenting, please fill out the Monday teaching form.

Please note that The Origami Source, Consignments, Silent Auction and Exhibition Area will not be open on Monday.

Forgot Something?

Often attendees contact us to add something they forgot in their original registration such as a T-Shirt, a Collection, or a meal. To facilitate these add-ons, we have added a new registration form where you can sign up for these additional items. Please note that you must be logged in under the same website account that you used to register. This page is only for additions, not to change things from your original registration (e.g. a T-shirt size); for that you still need to email us at convention-registration [at] origamiusa.org.

Silent Auction

The Silent Auction is a venue for rare, unusual and valuable items. More information here.

Parking

There will be free parking on campus for both overnight and day attendees. More detailed information is here.

Meals

We will have information available about restaurants that you can reach with a long walk, a car or taxi ride or a short bus ride. We highly recommend, however, that you preorder meals from the St. John's University dining hall. If you are not staying overnight but elect to have your meals at Montgoris, your ordered meals will be noted on the reverse side of your name tag.

We will have coffee, decaf and tea available in the Hospitality Area before classes. See the Food page for more information.

Monday Night Banquet

Monday Night Dinner is a wonderful opportunity to meet your favorite origami creators and authors, and your new and old friends, in an intimate and relaxed atmosphere. See here for menu details and prices. In order to keep the prices reasonable, we've opted for a more casual atmosphere, replacing formal china and linens with less formal place settings, but the food will be good and the camaraderie as rich as ever.

Dining Hall Access

If you are staying at St. John's, your "Storm Card" will allow you access to the Montgoris Dining Hall for meals.

Research Library Request

The OrigamiUSA research library contains mostly hard-to-find or out-of-print books. You can request a specific book to be held for you at the Information Desk in Hospitality. More details are here.