Nativity Scene

Sergio L. Guarachi V.

Interview with:
Óscar Zapata
-Editorial 3
-Nativity Scene 4
-Little Christmas Tree 14
-Polar bear 19
-Pine 2 21
-Interview: Óscar Zapata 23
-The power of play 27
-Drawing Origami 29
-Word Search 30
-Mini News 31
-Minichallenge 33
-Gallery 34
Mini Neo Group: Naty Nefesh, Graciela Vicente, Yara Yagi, Víctor J.
Quintero, Fernando García, Gerardo G., Liliana
Badillo, Alberto Ramírez, Matthew Green y Ben
Fritzson

Diagrams are sent to: minineodiagramas(a)yahoo.com

Cover photo: Nativity Scene, created, folded and photographed by Sergio L. Guarachi V., edited
by Víctor J. Quintero
 A new year has passed almost without us adapt and that they feel as at home as I do on
noticing! this team. Thank you for your collaboration.
We are already almost into the holidays! All I should thank the editorial team once again
of us who are part of the editorial group want to for being the best team: the most generous
send you our best wishes for a happy holidays. with their time, patient, dedicated, attentive,
May the New Year be full of beautiful stories, considerate… In short, in my opinion it is a
new folds and original creations. perfect team of which I am proud to be a part.
There are always details to polish; I don't doubt
We wonder how it is possible that there are
that the editions could be better… but what is
so many – and so talented – creators in Bolivia.
certain is that from the outside you cannot see
We'll have to learn their methodology for
the hard work that this team is doing, edition
spreading this wonderful hobby.
after edition. And so, I believe that the result is
And so, it is our pleasure to present to you, in very good.
this edition of Mini Neo, two origamists from
Despite all this and even having an enviable
that country.
team, I would like to remind you, our readers,
In this edition, the interviewee is Osrigami that if you have any suggestion or proposals, or
Oz (Óscar Zapata), a magnificent creator with if you would like to see your diagrams published
great promise. He pays great attention to in this magazine, you can send us your mes-
elegance and detail in his folds and presenta- sages at this address:
tion, and also brings us joy with a wonderful
minineodiagramas(a)yahoo.es
“Christmas present”: the publication of a new
book. What good news! We have always Graciela Vicente
thought that spreading the art of origami is a
good idea, however it is done.
Along these same lines, once again we have
the pleasure of presenting to you a model by
Sergio Guarachi. He's been one of my personal
favorites since he was no more than 15 years old,
when he was already a prodigious creator. With
time, he has perfected his technique and tried a
few new ones, always enthusiastic to learn.
Such is the case of the model that he offers us in
this edition: a beautiful Nativity scene. I hope
you enjoy it and decorate many houses this
Christmas.
In addition, I welcome the new members of
the editorial team. I hope they find it easy to
3
 Nativity Scene
Design notes
Sergio L. Guarachi V.
Well, here I am again, contributing another
diagram to the origami community thanks to
MiniNeo.
Nativity! Where did the idea for this design
come from? It's a mixture of various ideas. I have
a strange way of working. I like simple and
expressive models very much, because it is
difficult for me to design them; so, the first idea
came from a Nativity which I already had but
which was very complicated. Beginning with this
Nativity was a good idea (after what happened in
the case of the Simplefant).
I based my work on models I had seen by
Ángel Morollón and Graciele Vincente, since (I
must confess) it made it easier for me to come up
with the idea. Then I discarded right away the
idea of squares. There isn't much to say about the
design process; it wasn't a very difficult theme,
although creating the “Baby Jesus” was a little
complicated, because he should appear fragile
and small.
Here, the interesting thing is the folding
process. It was the first time that I used the wet-
folding technique. I loved it, and it works well
with these models; so I recommend that you use
Canson paper, perhaps not very thick if it is very
small. I recommend that you fold it using an 8.5”
x 13” sheet. That will give the figures good height
and will be a little more resistant. If I may say it
this way, “Wet folding is something different. It's
a technique through which you express all your
energy and your desire to finish a model.”
Enjoy the diagrams. I made them with the
desire of giving a gift to all those who follow me
and all those who follow origami.
I send you a hug from Bolivia.
4
 5
Based on the Nativity Scene of Ángel Morollón
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
 14
Model and diagrams by Andrés Lozano
15
16
17
18
19
 18 19

Usar marca del paso 2

24 23 22 21

17 21

Hundido escalonado abierto

25 26 27

Pliegue pivotado Dobleces no referenciados.

La figura se volverá en 3D

Pliegue pivotado

20
 Pine 2
Crease Pattern
Joel González Barrera
This model was born when I saw the
Christmas tree Mini Challenge. My intention was
to participate by creating something that didn't
have color changes and wasn't a modular. So, I
mulled over possible alternatives for creating
this model. The design eventually came from the
idea of transforming a prism-shaped figure into
a cone, keeping the same geometric shapes. In
this way, the CP has its origin in the division of
angles, forming triangles.
Figure 1: Sketch and initial Figure 2: Pine, cardstock
idea. yellow.
The folding sequence for this figure is simple.
Once you have printed the CP, you only need to
re-draw over the lines with a pen, which will
make the creases stay folded easier. When you
fold it in a smaller size, I recommend using gift
wrapping paper, couche or cambric paper. I
usually use this kind of paper and the results are
very good. If you want to fold the pine tree in a
larger size, I suggest using card stock or opaline
paper, which will make it more moldable and
give it greater stability.
Figure 3: Final model,
bond paper.
21
Pine 2
Autor: Joel González Barrera
La zona gris es la pestaña de unión de la pieza con pegamento.
Lineas negras pliegue de montaña (Mountain fold)
Lineas rojas pliegue de valle (Valley fold)

22
 Opening the doors of digital
Origami resources.
Óscar Zapata
Interview by Naty Nefesh
A few months ago in the hustle and bustle of social networks, I met Óscar
Zapata, better known as Origami OZ, a fresh and dynamic source of pure
collaborative origami energy.
I am one of the co-founders of the Bolivian
Origami Society (SBO) in La Paz, Bolivia. My
profession is graphic design; I am also an indus-
trial soldering technician, and I am currently
studying 3D architectural design. In my free time,
I like to practice WallyBall (rebound volleyball)
and, obviously, fold.
mimeograph that I still treasure today, which
includes the models I mentioned earlier and,
above all, the model that began all of my love for
origami: the “Caterpillar” by Maarten Van Gelder.
This model is very special for me; it is very sym-
bolic, because it's the origin of all of my passion
and love for this art.
If origami didn't exist, my entire life would be
different. At one moment, my life divided into
two: A or B, and I chose A. Here I am many years
later, holding in my heart many beautiful
moments that this marvelous art-science has
given me, which I wouldn't trade for anything.

When I was about 12 years old, I began to

make my first folds; I still remember them very
well today: the Spanish box, the Japanese
fountain, the boat, a space ship, and other similar
traditional models. Over the past four years I
have taught various kinds of workshops for
NGOs, educators, teachers and others.
The reason why I discovered the world of
origami was like every other child: to be differ-
ent, to get attention, to know something more
than everyone else; all of this motivated me to
search for new models to fold, but above all I was
moved by the beautiful sensation you feel when This is why origami is the expression of an
you finish a model and it comes out as good or artist's feeling of love for paper. Among my
better than you had hoped. The first person who favorite kinds of paper are the following: bond
put me in contact with this wonderful world was paper, which is very nice paper; I love all kinds of
my mother, may she rest in peace. She bought
me my first magazine in the “Alasita” fair. It was a
Kraft paper and its different weights; these are
the ones I generally use most. I normally do not 23

use the paper just as it comes; first, I paint it with
my own techniques that provide two things:
color, which is the most obvious thing, and the
chemical property that transforms the paper. I
call it the “crilin” technique. In brief: first I choose
the paper, I transform it, and then I fold it.
Another characteristic of my models is that,
generally speaking, I always wet fold them using
one of the various possible techniques.
Throughout my experience I have also had the
opportunity to try other kinds of paper that I
personally create in my studio.
Among the greatest challenges I have faced is
included Robert J. Lang's model, “Black Forest
Cuckoo Clock”. I folded it five years ago and it was
a great challenge because of its dimensions.
Really, painting the paper was torture because
the paper's dimensions were 3 meters by 30
centimeters, if I remember correctly.
Throughout this time, the figures who have
influenced me most in my origami career have
been: Akira Yoshizawa, the father of modern
origami; Román Díaz, an author I met in the 3rd
Latin American Origami Congress, in Bolivia;
Tomoko Fuse and Kunihiko Kasahara, to mention
a few.
Among my favorite models, I can say that I have a
predilection for simple models with color
changes, such as:
Fox – Hideo Komatzu
Rat – Eric Joisel
Complex Rose – Toshikazu Kawasaki
Panda – Akira Yoshizawa
American Fox Terrier – Román Díaz
My work process as an origamist has had an
interesting dynamic; I like to create figures with
volume, but sometimes the simplicity of my
creations doesn't allow me to give it to them; in
any case, I am very happy to create my own
designs. When I got up the courage to do it I
thought it would be difficult, but it's funny how,
when I am inspired, I can create three models in
one day. I remember very well and emphasize the
words of my brother in the SBO, Sergio
“Origamista” Guarachi, when he said to me,
“something has to come out of it”; and that is
how it has been. When you are simply folding to
create something spontaneously without
knowing what, something surprisingly comes
out of it and give life to the process. In general,
that is how I create my models. There is also
another way that is more complex, and it con-
sists in wanting to create something starting
from an idea, like happened with models like my
“raccoon”, “meow” and “horse”. These are
models that were created on purpose, and
personally they are my favorites.
24

Without a doubt, the “raccoon” is a very
important figure in my career, and if I could keep
it in a time capsule I would, because it is one of
the first models that I created; it contains my
leap from being a folder to being a creator.
Besides that, it is a simple and beautiful figure,
which – together with the painting technique –
highlights its beauty and value more. Creating
this figure is also a great triumph because I
invested many years trying to find the right
technique to for the final painting of the model.
Since July of this year, I have been publishing
my creations bit by bit, sadly; I often don't have
enough time, but thanks be to God, little by little
I hope to have more time to dust off many of my
creations that have been stored away.
Fortunately, as the years go by origami is
gaining a larger and more important place in the
world, although this recognition varies greatly
from country to country. For example, here in
Bolivia it is very difficult to get paper, but beyond
this it became necessary to produce our own
paper, with explosions of creativity, transform-
ing the kinds of paper that already existed and
giving them new qualities that they didn't have
before. This has many advantages, such as
making the product more affordable. Since it is
an artisanal product, the paper has greater
value; you can give it different characteristics,
which cannot be found in paper that comes from
a factory. In this way the paper is adapted to the
needs of an origamist, in size and also in colors
and textures.
Although there are origami societies or
groups in many countries, I am of the opinion
that the recognition that an origamist receives
does not depend on his belonging or not to one
of them. I know many independent origamists
who are very well known and respected, but for
those who are beginning their first origami
folds, I would recommend belonging to a group.
This kind of environment is a source of informa-
tion, experience, and above all, inspiration –
which are very important ingredients for
developing and channeling talent.
For new origami lovers who want to begin to
create their own figures, I recommend that they
seek inspiration from various perspectives. For
example, when I see new members who want to
fold or create, it inspires me; other moments of
inspiration are when there are design competi-
tions. So these are great opportunities to fill
yourself with creativity and let yourself go to
create and fold. Nonetheless, it is clear that each
person adopts his own method according to his
abilities and to what he finds helpful, whether it
be looking at photos of models, consulting
books or simply reading Facebook, which
recently has become a great tool for creativity.
And if inspiration doesn't come, don't do any-
thing; play with your pets, relax, have something
to eat. Inspiration will come in due time.
I hope that long-term we keep seeing new
folders who bring another focus to origami, and
that important new forums like Neorigami and
its magazine Mini Neo will continue to be 25
created, so we can see more talent and, in twenty
years, see models we can't even imagine today. I
hope that new kinds of paper will become
available to origamists, and that there will be a
greter number of professional studies of origami.
I would be very happy to be able to see all of this.

Lastly, to conclude this interview, I want to say

goodbye, but not without mentioning a very
important project where I am investing all of my
efforts and my time. The project will be called
“Ode to Origami – High-level Origami Designs”,
the first specialized origami magazine with a
professional focus, which I hope will be running
very soon. Meanwhile, I'd like to tell you that I
share Robert J. Lang's idea that origami is like
music. That is why, metaphorically speaking, this
is an ODE to origami; a magazine like a clean
canvas, a musical staff with my own notes, with
those of my companions in the Bolivian Origami
Society; with yours, if you want; hers, and his, of
all of us; of famous musicians, but essentially of
all those musicians who are difficult to find, who
are hidden, little known… In which there will be
room to discover, share, fold, enjoy, help, etc.
So as not to lose track of this project that
Osrigami OZ mentions to us, we invite you to
follow him and know more about his work at the
following link:

https://www.facebook.com/OrigamiOZ

26
 The power of play
By Naty Nefesh

Several weeks ago we celebrated “World

Origami Days” once again; an activity that, as
many of us know, aims to spread origami
throughout the world and expand its horizons,
as much for experts as for beginners of this
marvelous art form.

As is our tradition, Mini Neo wanted to be a

part of this beautiful celebration, and, for a
second time, we organized the virtual game of
“Origami Tag during World Origami Days” – an
activity that involves countless participants,
with the goal of strengthening ties, creating new
friendships, and exploring the creativity of each
participant through the challenges that are
proposed. This game began as the result of one
of the many conversations constantly going on
in the Mini Neo Editorial Group, and we are very
pleased to see how this game captures the
hearts of more and more people and is an activity
that people look forward to and are excited
about. Your participation is of great value to us.
This second edition of the game allowed us to
widen and surpass the geographical and linguis-
tic limits of the first edition. Origami invaded the
far corners of the globe, with models both
traditional and modern, Throughout World
Origami Days many new origami friends were
made while folders shared their interests and
showed their ingenuity. 27
 In particular, this year was full of very sym-
bolic models and challenges that inspired more
than one participant to show their more creative
and fun side. Some of the most unusual results
were the creation of zombies and lab rats with
ears on their back. It also stimulated improvisa-
tion; an example of this was the model created
by Alexander Oliveros, who was challenged to
fold a dog. The funny thing was that while most
people would think of folding a model with four
legs, he instead got the idea of folding a delicious
paper hot dog. Just like these very special more
complex models, other simpler but immensely
beautiful models were also very well received:
their colors, textures and shapes gave a personal
and very special touch to each post.

Here we say goodbye, but not without

thanking each and every one of the people who
participated for their valuable contributions. We
hope that those who didn't have the chance to
be involved may play next year, and that all our
folds may unite to carry the name of origami
every higher.

28
 Drawing Origami
By Pere Olivella
Sometimes without your knowing how,
projects are born that end up becoming reality.
This book was born from a proposal that Nicolas
Terry made almost two years ago to Halle and
me (Pere), when he saw the diagrams we were
drawing for the “Pajarita” the newsletter of the
AEP (Spanish Origami Association). This book,
the first of a series, is born from this collabora-
tion among Halle, Nicolas Terry and Pere.
The spirit of the project is to preserve for the
origami world these models which are so beauti-
ful, but which have remained undiagramed. The
objective of the book is to share these origami
models that otherwise would remain unpub-
lished, and to make known new creators who
have designed truly outstanding models.
The heart of the book is based on a completely
new style of diagrams, which combines a draw-
ing of each step with the 3D realism of a photo-
graph, which makes the diagram clearer. All of
this is accompanied by some beautiful colors
that make a truly beautiful diagram. The final
result is a full-color book, full of colorful, three-
dimensional images that give the sensation that
the models are folding themselves as if it were a
comic strip.
The book contains 36 models at different
levels of difficulty, all of them previously unpub-
lished, from new origami artists and from great
creators like Robert Lang, Quentin Trollip, Román
Díaz, Fernando Gilgado, Halle, and Gachepapier.
All of the models were chosen for their good
design and for a pleasing folding sequence.
Artists: Tuan Nguyen Tu/Victor
Coeurjoly/Angel Morollon/Patricio Kunz
Tomic /Maria Sinayskaya/Ekaterina
Lukasheva/Jozsef Zsebe/Mindaugas
C e s n a v i c i u s /A l e x a n d e r K u r t h / E r i c
Vigier/Gachepapier/Richard Ojeda Soto/Jose M.
Herrera Bello/Kaze/Halle/Nicolas Terry/Tom
Defoirdt/Sebastien Limet/Fernando
Gilgado/Roman Diaz/Vincent Achard/Robert J.
L a n g /J u a n f ra n Ca r r i l l o / N g u y e n N g o c
Vu/Quentin Trollip/Eduardo Santos/Richard
Galindo Flores/Didier Piguel/Kunsulu
Jilkishiyeva/Paulius Mielinis
Hard cover
Authors: Carlos González Santamaria, Pere
Olivella and Nicolas Terry.
208 pages
36 models
Languages: English and French
You can buy it here:
http://www.origami-shop.com
29
 Word Search

M A G I C Y T I V I T A N P
A M C O P Y X N R A B U Z F
G H Y R N E O R I G A M A X
A O H G I G A N T H C M E G
Z M A D E B Y Y O U I T H R
I E N E O R I G A L K M E O
N N E H B S H E Y L E O L U
E A X Y R E Q U K T Y H L P
O T Z A Z X W R U S O S O F
R Y T H E O R Y A H C D U C
I S P I L S U M H A E R Y B
G O L L E I T Z E C Y U E O
A L O K U S A H L U R J R O
M F H W I G H O R I G U J K
R O Z R U T E D A M X G H I
A R H X I N O J N A R O A C
E C Z N H O T E Y E K N O D
Y U I S F A M I D G H O M A
W M E D E L L I N R T Y W R
E A U E M A D R E S A Y A L
N R I V R E S T A D I Z N I
E H J K Y T H A W Q T J I K
X U I C O O S T F I G U E w

1. Christmas 6. Stars 11. Nativity

2. CRIB 7. Family 12. Gifts
3. Wizard 8. Omen 13. New Year
4. Tree 9. Church 14. Barn
5. Donkey 10. Food 15. Byre
30
 Free Book “Paper Masks” by Oscar Zapata –
Origami OZ

Christmas is a time for gifts, for sharing with

friends, family and everyone who has a special place in
our lives. Accordingly, Origami OZ has chosen to team
up with Mini Neo to offer each one of our readers, in
this edition, a wonderful Christmas present.

The present is “Paper Masks,” a book by Origami OZ

that contains ten wonderful and surprising models
that evoke different kinds of masks. It includes a wide
range of models, from a rabbit to a Dracula mask. The
book can be downloaded for free, directly from the
Neorigami website or from the following link:

http://goo.gl/iSDfoF

We thank Origami OZ for his colaboration and we

hope that you, our readers, are very pleased with this
surprise.

Nihon Bunka Matsuri – Japanese Culture Festival

– Argentina

From the 5th to the 8th of December, the Argentine-

Japanese Cultural Foundation will hold a festival
whose goal is to show various types of artistic and
culinary expressions related to the fascinating world
of Japanese culture. The event will include the opporu-
nity to become more familiar with origami and other
paper-related techniques, such as kirie (cut paper) and
chigirie (torn paper).

For more details about this activity, we invite you to

check out the following link:

http://goo.gl/zayF9a

31
 Flying Origami Marathon – England

Next December 20, in the city of Stafford,

England, a unique activity will take place. It seeks
to promote healthy lifestyles by folding and
chasing paper airplanes. The activity will include
techniques that help to fold and improve the
design of the airplanes that each of the partici-
pants will create.

For more information about this activity,

follow this link:

http://goo.gl/xKPw6X

EMOZ - New Exhibit

The exposition “Paper Dresses” ends on

Monday, December 8th, and the Zaragoza
Origami Museum School will change its main
exhibit to show models by Fernando Gilgado.
The name of this exhibit will be “Two-Color
Origami” (“Papiroexia Bicolor”) and it will be
inaugurated on Tuesday, December 16th.

For more information about this exhibit and

the various workshops that the museum offers,
we invite you to follow these links:

http://emoz.es/

http://exporigami.com/

32
 When we proposed the Christmas tree
challenge, we didn't think it would be too
complex. We're not sure why, but it seems like it
ended up being difficult for many people.
Perhaps it was because sometimes we demand
too much from ourselves, maybe because we
just don't get inspired, or because our calendar is
full of many things…
Anyway, we had some beautiful models.
Some of the ideas are original, useful, fantastic
and innovative. Thank you for your participation!
In the gallery, we offer you photos of the
Christmas tree challenge. If you have not yet had
the pleasure of seeing them elsewhere, don't
miss this opportunity. Thank you again for
participating and for your enthusiasm with the
next challenge. We hope you enjoy it and that
you can surprise us. Heart picture frame, Leyla Torres’s
variation from picture frame of Mike Von
EIGHTH MINI CHALLENGE: HEARTS Horne
Since the next edition comes out in
You have until January 25, 2015, to present
February, we thought that this challenge's
us your creations.
model should represent Saint Valentine, and
what represents him better than a heart? Remember that this is a challenge to
stimulate creativity; therefore, the expecta-
And so, for this challenge you have to
tion is that the models you present have
create hearts, with the understanding that
been created expressly for this challenge.
they need not be simply hearts. They can be
We cannot monitor which models have been
hearts, modular heart designs, boxes with
created beforehand, so we would be grateful
hearts or postcards with hearts… We leave it
for your honesty in presenting only newly
up to you. Let's see how you can surprise us.
created models. TIME TO CREATE!
It doesn't matter if they are modular, or
You can send photos of your models
unorthodox, with a single sheet of paper,
(which will be published in Mini Neo 24) to us
many pieces or one piece with color changes.
at this address:
You decide. The same applies to the color,
form or style; that's between each person minineodiagramas(a)yahoo.es
and his or her imagination. You can use any
You can also publish them in the event that
kind of paper, shape, size or number of
will be created for this challenge, at:
modules.
http://goo.gl/RwXj4c
As always, we wish you luck, and we hope
that you enjoy creating (which is the most http://goo.gl/bphU9M
important thing) and that you surprise us
with the results (we are sure you will!) and
with your enthusiasm. Graciela Vicente 33
 Seventh Minichallenge:
Christmas tree.
Gallery
Tree-box by Graciela Vicente

By Cristina Bonnet By Andrés Lozano

By Joel González Pine 2 by Joel González

34
 By Elva Villegas By Francesc Martí

By Lucia Da Costa By Susana Haydee

By Nicolás Gajardo

35
By Víctor Sanchez

Tree (lace) By Víctor J. Quintero

¡Happy
Holidays!
36
 Thanks for reading

December-January
2014-2015
5
Formato diseñado por Lina Restrepo 2014