- Title: “Magnificent Origami Mandalas”
- Author: Matthew Green
- Publisher: Independently published (July 17, 2024)
- ISBN-13: 979-8332156427
- Binding: Paperback, perfect binding
- Pages: 110
- Printing: Full color
Being a huge fan of geometric — and especially modular — origami, I was keen to review Matthew Green’s first origami book. As you can see from the illustrations on the front cover, the models are colorful and highly geometric, a real feast for the eyes.
Measuring approximately 22×28 cm, this book is just less than 1 cm thick, with a perfect binding (pages glued along the spine) and a gloss lamination on the cover. A clear, easy-to-read serif typeface is used throughout, and no text is too small to read. Each chapter of the book has its own color, making it easy to flick to a specific chapter by simply curving the book slightly and allowing the pages to fan out.
The introduction is informative, starting with how the book came about, who it’s for, the content and how to use the book; it then discusses diagramming styles, symbols, bases, paper, tools, etc. It’s aimed at intermediate-level folders but doesn’t make any assumptions. The contents lists all 32 models, each accompanied by a photo, so that you can easily see the finished result without having to jump to the diagrams. Following the introduction, there are four chapters, each dealing with a different starting form; “Waterbomb Base,” “Bird Base,” “Box-Pleated Bases” and “Friendship Base.”
For each model, a brief introduction is given, followed by a photo of the completed design and a digital drawing that shows the relationship between the finished model and its starting paper size. The diagrams are digitally drawn and very clear. Matthew uses standard symbols and incorporates shading, highlights and shadows to give the drawings depth, making them easy to follow. Each step is numbered and follows a swirling ribbon across the pages. Some steps also include written instructions to provide additional information. Much thought has been given to the pagination, to ensure that, where possible, diagrams don’t spread over more than two pages, thus reducing the need to turn over partway through a model. To get an idea of the layout, I’d recommend having a look at the diagrams for Laus, published in issue 85 of The Fold. Laus does not appear in the book, but the style is the same.
I decided to get a good feel for the book by folding one mandala from each chapter, starting with Mater Admirabilis, from the first chapter:
This model was relatively easy to fold, and keeping with the rainbow color scheme certainly made it look bright and cheerful. The next two models that I folded were The Butterfly Effect and Paul’s Star.
The Butterfly Effect is a striking shape (similar to a Maltese Cross) and exhibits interesting patterns. Paul’s Star is 3D in appearance, standing almost 1 cm from the table (unless squashed flat). I have to admit, I did struggle to get sharp results for these two models in spite of trying my best to fold them accurately. That said, I’m known for being a bit of a stickler! Although the recommended paper size was 3 inches (7.5 cm) for both models, I think using slightly larger paper, 4 inches (10 cm), or even 6 inches (15 cm), might help.
The final model I folded was Simple Friendship. Although not a traditional base, the Friendship base was the first base that Matthew designed specifically for folding mandalas. This was quite possibly the easiest model that I folded, but it did end up being quite large so might have been better folded from smaller squares.
To summarize, this book is well presented, with clear, easy-to-follow instructions. It appears that much thought has gone into the content, design and layout. I think it would make an ideal Christmas gift for any modular origami enthusiast. Or you could treat yourself and use it to fold decorations. It’s available worldwide, through Amazon, and covers the folding of 32 Magnificent Origami Mandalas.