ST. LOUIS — Imagine an outdoor sculpture gallery of birds taking flight, painted ponies, emerging butterflies, soaring paper airplanes and boats afloat. Now envision such an exhibit done in the ancient art form of origami.
Origamiinthegarden, a traveling exhibition of 18 large-scale installations, will unfold (see what we did there?) at the Missouri Botanical Garden beginning April 17 and running through Oct. 10.
Instead of creased paper, the objects are made from museum-quality metals by Santa Fe, New Mexico, artists Jennifer and Kevin Box. They use the technique of lost-wax casting and fabrication.
Kevin Box explained of the medium, “The natural and yet scientific setting of a botanical garden makes it the ideal setting for the exhibit that brings together art, science and nature to entertain, educate and inspire our senses in an outdoor setting.”
In addition to Box’s own compositions, there are collaborations with world-renowned origami artists Te Jui Fu, Beth Johnson, Michael G. LaFosse and Robert J. Lang.
The main attraction of the exhibition is Master Peace, a 25-foot sculpture that creates the illusion of a thousand stainless steel origami peace cranes hovering above the water.
The exhibit is included with Missouri Botanical Garden admission of $14 for adults and free for children ages 12 and under. St. Louis city and county residents receive discounted admission.
Missouri Botanical Garden members enter for free.
The botanical garden is at 4344 Shaw Blvd. in south St. Louis, accessible from Interstate 44 at the Vandeventer exit and from Interstate 64 at the Kingshighway north and south exit. There will be free parking on-site and two blocks west at the corner of Shaw and Vandeventer.
The exhibit had been scheduled for St. Louis in April 2020 but was delayed because of the pandemic.
