About Vance Houston Origami

Vance Houston Art

ARTchitect, Designer, Entrepreneur

Original one of a kind sculptures and paintings. World class self taught origami artist. I am forever passionate and LOVE ALL ART and the idea of self discovery through creativity and exploration. Quite possibly the most skilled and knowledgeable origami artist in the world. 35 Years old.

Reno, NV, USA

Mentally Taxing and Exhausting These aspects can relate to both design complexity and physically demanding components. It is a misconception that Origami at this level is only fun. Folding 15,000 sheets of paper over 150+ hours before you begin physical construction of a work is can be truly draining. It is monotonous repetition at its finest. If you want to make Origami works at this level the work must be done and without this aspect the sculptures and pieces themselves would have less meaning and personal connection. As a self taught artist I have a true affinity for the technical process and challenging aspects of physically creating and realizing designs with my own hands and brain. Everything I create is original to me. This means that I have never seen the works elsewhere. Pushing the limits and boundaries of Origami and mental dexterity I only challenge myself to be the best artist I can be. Pushing the limits and challenging my own ability is the most rewarding part. Making things I have never seen before with my own hands and mind is another aspect that brings fulfillment and contributes to why I am pursuing this passion to such an extent..

But is it really Art? (Of course it is!!!)

In my opinion a fundamental aspect of art is that there is truly not a right or wrong way. That is the prerogative of the maker, to be creative and make decisions that are solely based off of their desires and intentions. My origami process and other works contradict this in the sense that there is absolutely a “right” and “wrong” way which is a direct result of the engineering and formulaic approach. My designs are completely organic and there is truly only one “right” way to make each form or structure. To stray from this would result in broken and incomplete structures – not allowing you to further expand upon the mathematical principles to evolve the complexity…Fractals.

Origami Process

About My Origami Process – Geometric Formulas: Creating these sculptures begins with a consistent mathematical formula on how to evolve and advance the forms and designs of three-dimensional sculptural origami paper puzzles. In a sense I know how I am going to build a specific design based not upon what I want or think the sculpture should look like but rather by using mathematical principles related to how the geometry varies. The nature of this mathematical approach allows the final product to be more of a result and surprise than a preconceived geometric form. This gives you the blueprint for creating sculptures that have a concrete and yet visually unknown solution which allows my work to continually evolve in a manner that is both fascinating and intriguing relating to the pursuit of discovery. Making my sculptures more complex creates an exponentially increasing amount of potential designs with variated geometry. These organic designs are not exclusive to this era and express futuristic cognitive themes.

Origami Vs. Paper Engineering

Although they are technically Origami sculptures, I refer to my work as Paper Engineering and ARTchitecture. Origami is the art of paper folding. Once a single sheet of paper is folded you have a finished product that is usually representational of something that exists and is identifiable, such as a crane or fish. To me the process of my art is at odds with this common perception of traditional Origami. In Paper Engineering, the monotonous task of folding thousands of sheets of paper is just the beginning. A large portion of the time is spent physically building the sculptures from these folded sheets. This is the challenging stage which is also most rewarding. You get to see the complete transformation of the paper in the finished products.
Most people assume that my creations are fun and playful which is true to a certain extent…however there is also a dark side. I would encourage anybody to spend (if they had my skill) 150+ hours prep folding 15,000 Sheets before actually sculpting an artwork; then you can tell me how much fun you’ve had as you experience the mental dexterity and physical pains related to headaches and paper burned fingers. I love challenging myself to push both the complexity of design and skill level required; I have even made a 20 hour sculpture without any eyesight start to finish (I am blindfolded and do this completely by feel/touch and experience). What I make I have never seen before which is a large reason why I have pursued this to the extent that I have. It is also how I get the most out of my work.

Through hands-on mathematics I create concrete engineered geometric forms that represent the principles of infinity. Nearly every design I create theoretically expands infinitely in all directions and each specific sculpture is a representation of a physical geometric space that exists within these infinite patterns. The finished products often result in naturally occurring relatable symbols such as 3rd Eyes, Star of David, Ancient Symbolism, Keyholes, Abstract Humanoid Faces, Forms, and more. Diverse viewing angles and negative spaces organically create these forms within the paintings and as you move about the sculptures allowing the geometry to line up

2-Dimensional Paintings and Drawings

*** Unlike traditional computer assisted fractal and geometric art this is completely hand drawn and handmade. It requires a knowledge and understanding of these aforementioned designed principles and allows you to push and challenge yourself in an organic manner. This permits a true connection to the complex fundamentals that I am utilizing. The more my brain hurts and confused I get is a good thing; an indication that I am challenging myself which creates a type of gratification when you complete these forms. Because of this hands on approach there are slight imperfections in the shape building which is something I both appreciate and embrace. The forms being slightly misaligned and "off" gives way to the idea of movement/motion/growing/shifting. In my opinion this results in and creates an “ALIVE” effect in the design that expresses and represents the ideas and themes of movement through fluidly and fluctuation; an illusion of movement within the organic form.

Cubic Fractal Mandala – Mathematical Geometric Theory
My Illusion drawings illustrate the term “engineered art”. I start with the sculptures of Related Origami Fractal Cubic Grid Design Variations that have been built with the same “formulaic process”. In theory these 3-dimensional versions are all connected and typically contain the same number of sheets and exist within the same physical space when the mirrored images are dissected. The different 3-dimensional fractal structures are drawn from all 8 corners without depth perception. When inverted they share communal edges and shapes from the original built cubic grid design and can be arranged in a manner that always converts back to any starting point/origin when you follow the same fractal pattern as the origin cube. This is where the technical engineering aspect and mathematical formulas require a type of understanding and knowledge that is directly learned through my Origami background. These designs can then be reinterpreted and brought back into sculptural form using alternative materials.

PAREIDOLIA CONCEPTUAL GEOMETRY - Hidden Faces

Creating 2-Dimensions works of three dimensional structures that actually exist and applying the cubic fractal mandala principles. The Naturally Occurring Facial Dimensions are highlighted to emphasize the background vs. foreground of these origami sculpture illusion drawings. They are essentially the parts of the sculpture that exist further back which are visible in openings you peer through from the front of the works. These parts actually exist on the distant planes of the geometric design which are exposed through negative spaces within the front of the structures. You are left with the organically occurring negative spaces that create the dimensions and spaces of abstract eyes, noses, mouths, and often 3rd Eyes. This process is directly connected to my origami foundation and fundamentals in which the end result is not visually known but rather a surprise through the formulaic approach of built and engineered geometric forms. Concrete geometric forms engineered and evolved from my origami sculpture. Without this background I would not have arrived at this intersection that spawned from a true comprehension of geometric design principles and shapes. ORIGAMI LOVE

My Definition; What Art Means to Me

Art at its most basic level is about creating, expressing, and communicating ideas that originate from one’s own mind. It is paramount in terms of human growth and development. Its pursuit allows an individual to fully realize who they are by discovering their potential to create and realize ideas and abilities that are unique and exclusive to yourself. It is about developing new profound ways of thinking and creative growth which unfortunately is greatly understated in our current human condition.