Origami in the Garden and Chocolate in Madrid

May 9, 2025                                                                   Most Recent Posts:
Santa Fe Skies RV Park                                                O’Keeffe’s Abiquiu Home
Santa Fe, New Mexico                                                   Old Town Santa Fe

Origami in the Garden

Origami is a Japanese art of folding a square piece of paper in a way to produce a bird,  a boat, a butterfly, a pony and more.  Metal Artist Kevin Box takes origami to another level, transforming paper into museum quality metal sculpture through processes he has pioneered working with origami artists, foundries, fabrication shops, and his studio staff.

Origami in the Garden is an exhibition created by Santa Fe artists Jennifer and Kevin Box, featuring Box’s own compositions as well as collaborations with world-renowned origami artists.  These metal artworks are displayed in a beautiful outdoor setting.

Upon arriving you are given a map and an umbrella, if you wish, as there is little shade in the garden.  We were lucky since the day was not sweltering.   Notice the Pegasus sculpture on the map.  That’s where we started.

Jody and Tessa give an idea of the size of this metal horse.  Jodee is consulting the map which we did multiple times throughout our visit as it wasn’t as accurate or simple as it appeared.

Right after seeing the origami metal crow, I saw this live one in a tree.  It was amazing.  How do they do this metal sculpture or even the paper folding to create such an incredible likeness.

Such a wonderful environment in which to place the sculptures.

Further up the dry stream bed were the Paper Navigators.

The Paper Navigators
I’d love to see this in a good rain.  Do they have a monsoon season here?

Petrified wood that I assume was brought in as part of nature’s art work but I neglected to ask when we went into the gift shop.

Jodee reading about the Seed and Seed Sower done in 2017.

Kevin Box is the metal artist for both.   Michael LaFosse used the duogami technique of folding a single uncut square of paper with a different color on each side which created the brown squirrel with a pale colored chest.  My photo doesn’t capture the chest unfortunately.

Beth Johnson created the origami acorn using folded paper and computer-aided design techniques to produce the complex curves.  Kevin Box turned them both into metal sculpture.  Amazing.

The Iron Horses.   Wish I’d had Jodee and Tessa stand near these to show their size.   Definitely larger than they look here.

White Buffalo.  He was actually all white but my photo gives a silver cast to his rear which I really like.

Scents of Gratitude

Our last stop was the gift shop where outside we found an example of the unfolded origami sheet (in metal) and the folded creation.   You can judge from the chairs the size of the unfolder origami.

Inside were origami butterflies           

Two visitors were being given lessons.  The light from the door was bothersome.

Dancing Crane and Dancing Crane Unfolded. 

The crown jewel of the exhibition is Master Peace, a 25 foot tall sculpture of 1,000 stainless steel origami peace cranes. 500 of the cranes  are here creating this monument and 500 are scattered around the world as individual collector pieces.  I can’t imagine folding 1000 cranes.

Kevin and Jennifer Box are two amazing young people whose life work together  gives me a lot of hope which I can really use. 

Read their stories here and  the story of their wonderful vision here.

Can’t thank Jodee enough for bringing them into my life.  I doubt I would have seen this had it not been for her.

Madrid, New Mexico

After seeing the origami we headed up the Turquoise Trail to Madrid (pronounced  (Mad-rid not Ma-drid).  It’s a place Jodee loves for its atmosphere and particularly for its chocolates but more on that later.

Madrid is a small former coal mining town that has recreated itself asa  quirky hippyesque (is that a word) town of artists, unique galleries and eclectic shops.   It’s small and walkable and seriously unique.   Population 308.

You just park along the street and walk.

I saw the sign for the library but I didn’t see the door.  Wish I’d checked more closely.  Can’t imagine what a library in this town would have looked like.  But we were bent on lunch and later I got too caught up in the uniqueness of Madrid and forgot.

We had lunch at Refinery 14 where Jodee has gone every one of the five times she’s been here. 

We ate inside since all the noise was outside.  And of course I got no picture of us sitting at the table in the picture or of the delicious food we ate.   Although my journal tells me we had Ahi Tuna Tacos.

From there we wandered around town.

Took in the sights.

Thought about a fixer upper.

And whether Jodee needed some yard art.

We went into one gallery off of this raised western sidewalk fronted shops.

And sat in the back courtyard to soak up the atmosphere.  Pretty sure everything you can see is for sale.  I’m partial to the turquoise door and the mountain goats.

Unique bird bath

Complete with tooo cute bathing bird

Like O’Keeffe, I’d buy this place just for the door.  And what is above it?

I’d say the entire town was “very cool”.

Our last stop was the reason for the visit.  Jodee LOVES  Sugarman’s Little Chocolate Shop.   Do use the link to take a look at Harvey, read his story and see the MANY chocolates he makes.

This is serious chocolate.   As you can see from looking in the door, the shop is TINY and the counter barely inside.   I wasn’t able to get a decent picture of Jodee selecting her goodies.

But here’s a look at what I took home with me. 

The link to the website (above) shows an amazing variety of chocolates and particularly barks.  My barks are Dark raspberry, Milk peanut butter and White with organic cacao nibs.   Jodee got so many I can’t remember them maybe she will comment and tell us (hint hint).  But I did look on the “shop” page and love the names like Dark green chili cashew with Thai lemongrass, lime and Margarita salt.  Or Dark orange French Crepe with Orange Essence. I can’t even imagine these.

I would definitely have had Milk pecans with Vermont Maple Sugar and Sea Salt or White Lavender with Lavender Sugar but neither was available that day.  RATS!

What a fun day.  Thanks Jodee for these great finds.  What an addition to my travels you are.