Breathing Kirigami
The artform of kirigami is a variation of the traditional origami that
allows cuts of the paper, as opposed to only folds. In this project, I intertwined the natural simplicity of kirigami with the electronics of a microcontoller using only fine
thread as an intermediary in order to animate the delicate paper in motions resembling slight breadths.
I first experimented with different forms of kirigami to find a shape most conducive to resembling the pattern of inhalation and
exhalation once animated.
To allow for the breathing motion, I threaded the edges of the kirigami together and then
attached the ends to a motor. This motor was controlled by an Ardunio Uno programmed to simply
provide and release tension cyclically, thus resulting in a breathing motion of the paper folds.
