Russian Origami Artist Creates Breathtaking Modular Kusudama Models

There are many types of origami, but one of the most alluring ones is the Japanese kusudama that’s created by sewing or gluing multiple identical pyramidal units in various shapes. Lukasheva Ekaterina does all this, but without glue or sewing. It comes as no surprise that her incredible origami designs are grabbing eyeballs on the internet.

This origami artist from Moscow, Russia, was fond of folding paper airplanes since her childhood. When she turned 14, she started gluing paper model buildings in the school. It’d have been a passing fancy had her mathematics teacher not introduced her to an origami magazine that contained kusudamas. She immediately set out to create the traditional ones with her friend. So good did she get in creating kusudamas in her school that she earned some positive notes for geometry in a school contest?

Ekaterina all but forgot all about origami, once she joined Lomonosov University, Moscow, Russia. However, after graduating with honors as a mathematician and a programmer, her interest in origami was reignited, thanks to the internet, where she found different models to fold. She was totally floored by the Sonobe module, which comprises sturdy and easy to assemble units that don’t require glue. The ease and elegance of the pieces really excited her.

Motivated by this, Ekaterina started making origami units without glue. Not only this, but she also went on to marry the man who had designed the ‘kusudama.me’ website! So, where does she get her ideas for kusudama origami? In an interview with origamiusa.org, she says, “…I don’t sit nights trying to invent something. Instead, I catch the ideas flying around me in the air and put them into paper, bringing them to the material world.” She continues, “…The ideas are like creatures; they like it when someone takes care of them. So, sometimes they enter my mind on their own; I just need to listen carefully and open up my mind to them.”

Ekaterina uses various papers for her models. She uses thick paper for geometric modular and corrugations, and craft and packaged origami paper for models that have many layers that require thin paper. However, her favorite paper is a silver craft, since it matches almost every model and gives a moderate stylish look. Little wonder her kusudama models are created with such finesse and in all shapes, sizes, and colors. Her favorite is one of her first models, Grafique, that still delights her no end!

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Ekaterina Lukasheva

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