Meet Kenneth Ch’ng, the Malaysian origami master

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Transcript

00:00 Meet Kenneth Cheung, the founder of Malaysia's Origami Academy.

00:09 Internationally recognized and award-winning, Cheung is your go-to guy to learn all the

00:13 ways you can fold a piece of paper.

00:17 At the beginning of my earlier childhood, it was just as a hobby.

00:24 But as I grew up, I started to discover that origami is actually much more than meets the

00:31 eye.

00:32 Funnily enough, Cheung's first exposure to the art was during the Chinese Hungry Ghost

00:39 Festival when his mother taught him how to fold paper offerings.

00:43 Despite his interest at a young age, Cheung went on to work in the semiconductor industry.

00:49 However, a fateful event would eventually turn him back to his true passion.

00:55 The earthquake back in 2011 in Japan actually triggered the whole thing.

01:00 So I came very close to this life and death situation, the ordeal, together with my family,

01:07 and that made me think very seriously, you know, what I really want to do in life.

01:12 Cheung decided to leave the lucrative industry behind to pursue the art of paper folding.

01:18 He has since taken steps towards creating a unique Malaysian origami culture by coming

01:24 up with designs exclusive to this country, such as the Wau Bulan and Durian, created

01:29 with fellow artist Sam Yap.

01:33 The origami durian has a whopping 576 spikes folded from a single piece of paper with no

01:40 cuts made.

01:41 The origami durian has become a diplomatic art piece because we have presented it to

01:47 ambassadors to Japan before, and ever since it has been treated as an iconic Malaysian

01:52 representation of the origami, the highest level of achievement.

01:58 Cheung's Origami Academy is aimed at raising awareness on the boundless potential of origami.

02:06 Talking to a general Malaysian, they would regard origami as a child's play, or perhaps

02:12 hobby and craft at most.

02:16 He hopes to elevate origami into something greater, and to someday make it yet another

02:21 discipline for which Malaysia can be globally recognized.

02:26 To that end, Cheung welcomes all students, young or old, and even the disabled, to partake

02:32 in this highly accessible art form.

02:35 Origami is actually very inclusive, and it's just the techniques of folding a paper.

02:40 So I think it's very suitable for all walks of life.

02:44 There is no prerequisite.

02:46 Just about anybody can fold.

02:49 Divya Raghu and Noel Wong, FMT Lifestyle.

02:53 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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