Origami with Colours of Banbury 2022 - Session 1

The Colours of Banbury 2022 project are folding 5000+ paper cranes, which will be displayed as a suspended installation in Banbury to celebrate the Commonwealth Games taking place in Birmingham between July and August 2022.

Join the IWD flock by folding your own the iconic Origami crane in the colours of IWD.

The orizuru (折鶴 ori- "folded," tsuru "crane"), or paper crane, is a design that is considered to be the most classic of all Japanese origami. In Japanese culture, it is believed that its wings carry souls up to paradise, and it is a representation of the Japanese red-crowned crane. A thousand orizuru strung together is called senbazuru (千羽鶴), meaning "thousand cranes", and it is said that if someone folds a thousand cranes, they are granted one wish.

Purple, green and white are the colours of International Women's Day. The colours were first used by the Women's Social and Political Union in 1908 and are still universally recognisable today. Purple signifies justice and dignity. White represents purity, albeit a controversial concept. Green symbolises hope.