A few years ago I purchased a roll of authentic Japanese rice paper from Uwajimaya market in Seattle intending to use it on a number of projects but I only recently started using it.
A combination of balsa & basswood is used in the model. I designed it to stand off the floor the same height as a typical electronic flickering tea light. This is a floor lantern in the Japanese style that is 40 scale inches tall at 1½” scale. I used a variety of images on the internet as inspiration/reference material. While I was researching designs I realized how similar the visual styles of Japanese Carpentry are to that of the Arts & Crafts Movement.
Here’s an old architectural concept illustration from sometime in 2008. A sort of portico of brick archways suspends a living roof accessible from the second story of the main building to which both are attached. Small fruit-bearing trees could be made to take root making a pleasant garden roof-top.
Sometimes my impromptu drawings are like self-administered Rorschach tests. I’m always finding new ways of looking at the finished product. I would really be interested to know what it is you find in this one, which could be anything from futuristic sails unfurling to robotic DNA:
