Akira Yoshizawa, an origami master whose expressive paper gorillas made an art out of the craft tradition, died last month of heart failure and pneumonia, his wife said Sunday. He was 94.
Moving far beyond paper cranes and hats, Yoshizawa's origami gorillas appeared ready to lumber through the jungle and his frogs looked like they were on the verge of leaping off their lily pads.
He became a tireless ambassador for the craft after his work attracted attention overseas, traveling to more than 50 countries to teach people how to create new worlds out of folded paper.