Paper Honeycomb Structure...

 

I have always found turning flat drawings or prints into 3-dimensional objects challenging, so I decided to take the simple shape of a honeycomb, found in a natural occurring beehive and turn it 3-dimensional using paper. I chose to use paper clips as the joining agent because I thought they would be a simple way of connecting multiples and it is unusual. I began by folding a line of 6, 3cm by 3cm squares but leaving a lip at the end to connect each side. I began repeating this process. I like the shape but using paper at this thickness and size did not hold as well as I had expected, for the shape to hold better next time, I would either change material or make the honeycomb shape smaller or bigger.

As the first experiment of using paper and paperclips was successful up until the shape not completely holding its structure, I decided to go back to re-creating the shape but making sure the height was smaller in hope of it holding the structure off a beehive more successfully. This time the measurements were 2cm by 3cm, with the width remaining the same. I used smaller gold paperclips because it was all I had available to join the multiples together but the shape still was not holding as well as I want. I want to continue playing around with the beehive structure as it is a natural form that has a lot of room for manipulation and it is something I found interesting and re-occurring in my research.

I wanted to photograph the beehive running up a wall because beehives are normally found growing on found objects or hanging so, I decided to work with found on found objects. Maybe it would be a good idea to take smaller samples out and photograph them on natural and man-made found objects? Now the honeycomb shape remains structured and pure but I would like to play around with this shape alongside other natural occurring forms to manipulate this structure, maybe making it more distorted.

 

As my previous honeycomb structures have not held as well as I had hoped due to the sizes, I went on to create this sample created from heavy duty cartridge card, but the size has been decreased by a third of the other experiments. This sample took a lot more time because it is so small and therefore awkward to work with. The results however, were a lot more promising than the others were, mainly because the structure held and no paperclips were used as the joining agent, instead I used double sided sticky tape so that the finish was perfect and presentable with no mess.

 

I like working with this structure because it clearly shows order, order that comes from a natural source, this being the bees who created this honeycomb beehive. This structure running up a wall with lighting would be an incredibly unique piece inspired by nature’s order but manufactured. Not only is the structure 3-d and has slight flexibility, it also creates and presents beautiful shadows, as seen in the photograph on the left hand side. I wanted to begin my experimenting with paper as it is a natural resource but if this was to be manufactured the material choice would definitely need reconsidering to make the finished piece lasting for a lengthy amount of time.