Making a deer out of paper without cutting or using glue sounds impossible. But for Du Jialei, paper can be folded (折) into anything. There is no limit to his imagination.
Du, 23, is a student from Shanghai University. He won third place at the ninth IOIO (国际折纸奥林匹克) in February this year. A total of 803 competitors from 59 countries and areas took part in this year's event.
Du discovered his interest in folding paper in his childhood. After Du went to college in 2017, he had enough time to take the hobby seriously. He learned folding from online teachers and experts. Later he copied patterns from books. He spent almost three years improving his basic skills by making copies of other artists' designs. Then he made his own creations.
For Du, folding paper develops his ability to pay attention to both the bigger picture and the details. He is creative as he has been challenging himself to make original (原创的) works.
