Curvy Cow

Two days ago, I set aside several hours of my time and folded Stephan Weber's bull. I wanted to try wet folding it using watercolor paper because it is strong and comes in large sheets. However, because watercolor paper is produced for painters, it only comes in white, which can be bland for origamists.

"How do I add some flavor to watercolor paper," I thought, "Why not color it with some watercolor?" At the time, I thought it would be a great idea, so I stopped by an art supply shop to pick up watercolor paper and paint. I'll bet that the cashier thought I was a painter although I've never pursued painting by myself (I've taken classes before).

After getting home, I spent about an hour and a half painting the front and back sides of the paper. I chose to have one side reddish black and the other side bronze (for the horns), although I varied the pattern from place to place.

Everything was going well with the watercolor idea until I started folding. Because I wanted to wetfold the bull to shape it well, I needed to wet the paper throughout the folding process. Quickly, I realized that adding water to a watercolor painting makes the color come off. It was not that disastrous though, as most of the color was permanent. In fact, it was kinda cool to be able to adjust the color of the paper as I folded. In the end, the bull's color turned kinda pinkish, almost like a medium steak. The horns and tail grew muddier as the black from one side of the paper moved to the other side. Overall, I am happy with the way it turned out.

I think the really cool thing about this is that it combined two art forms in one project. Not only did I use my preferred medium of origami, but I also relived some childhood memories of watercoloring and painting. Although the process wasn't perfect, I would definitely try it again.