2018 Joint Mathematics Meetings

David Honda

Artists

David Honda

Mathematics Teacher

Marshall Middle School

San Diego, CA, USA

scubed09@yahoo.com

http://snaporigami.weebly.com/submissions-to-the-2017-bridges-art-exhibition.html

Statement

I'm primarily a middle school mathematics teacher with one of my hobbies being Origami and other paper crafts. Some years back I came across the work of Heinz Strobl which uses joined, folded strips of paper to create various structures. Much like unit origami, the structures are held together solely by the folds, no adhesives. My interest soon became an obsession and I've been neck-deep in little strips of paper ever since. The inspiration for my latest work has been figuring out how to create structures with both concave as well as convex surfaces and how those surfaces could be used to create models with internal structures.

Artworks

Image for entry 'Dodecahedral 11-Hole Torus'

Dodecahedral 11-Hole Torus

34 x 37 x 37 cm

cardstock paper

2016

Additional info

The inspiration for this particular piece was to create a model with an internal structure. One of the challenges with my work is that as my pieces have gotten larger, the issue of weight vs. support has become an issue. I wanted to see if I could build something that was mathematically and visually pleasing, but also structurally sound. The overall shape is based upon a dodecahedron. At the center of each face of the dodecahedron, the surface sinks inward like a funnel. Each of the 12 funnels joins at the center with another, smaller dodecahedron-based structure. Topologically speaking, the piece can also be considered an 11-holed torus.