NISSAN CREATES A FULL-SIZE ORIGAMI JUKE

November 9, 2015 by Nissan

◾British artist Owen Gildersleeve creates life-size Origami replica of Nissan JUKE

◾Unique paper sculpture uses 2,000 folded pieces of paper and took 200 hours to make

◾The sculpture celebrates the fifth anniversary of the JUKE

ROLLE, Switzerland – They say the best ideas start with just a blank piece of paper.

Celebrating the model's fifth anniversary, Nissan and a British paper artist have collaborated on a unique project to create a full-scale Origami JUKE.

In a nod to Nissan's Japanese heritage and inspired by the very first steps of car design – getting ideas onto paper – artist Owen Gildersleeve hand built the intricate replica model from paper to the exact dimensions of the current JUKE.

Owen took more than 200 hours and folded more than 2,000 pieces of paper to create the detailed sculpture.

The Origami JUKE features the same bold design cues – such as the wheel fenders, lights and grille – that give the real-life model its distinctive character.

'This was a great project to work on – hard work but very rewarding,' said artist Owen Gildersleeve. 'As a celebration piece, it draws on so many influences, such as the origami focus inspired by Nissan's Japanese roots. Using so many individual pieces of paper to create the overall structure also represents the thousands of people who helped bring the Nissan JUKE into reality in 2011.'

The Nissan JUKE's bold, standout styling has been a key factor in the model's success. Nissan created a brand new 'compact crossover' sector with the launch of the car, offering motorists something completely different, in terms of design, to any other vehicle on the road.

'The first step of any car design involves putting pencil to paper,' said Darryl Scriven, design manager at Nissan's Design Center for Europe. 'From that simple start, it's a complex journey to production involving hundreds of skilled people, thousands of man-hours and millions in investment. So we think it's very apt that on its fifth birthday, we celebrate the Nissan JUKE with a tribute that harks back to that simple, but bold, first step – all carried out with Nissan's signature innovation and excitement of course.'

The Origami JUKE is being revealed as 'World Origami Days' are being celebrated across the world between October 24 and November 11.

Q&A with Matthew Weaver, Project Lead Designer for Nissan JUKE

Q1: How does it feel to see JUKE 5 years on from the launch and still going strong?

Weaver: Great! It was refreshing to conceive such a bold design, and equally satisfying to see it remaining one of the most daring and exciting cars on the road. With that you might think it was the reserve of a few, but it's great to see many people really enjoying the car.

Q2: From a design perspective, what do you think has made JUKE such a success?

Weaver: The JUKE is iconic. It does not simply rely on graphical elements. Its DNA is of a special type. By this it could be said that the JUKE is recognizable from half a mile away. In a world of hum-drum, the JUKE adds a splash of color.

Q3: What are the three key styling cues which make JUKE unlike any other car on the road?

Weaver: Undeniably the front light graphics are so strong that it gave the JUKE a very plucky attitude. Then the cabin design with its sloping roof and tight window graphics hinting at our high performance products like the GT-R. Overall though I think it's the car's mass and volumes that set it apart. It's generous to the point of over protecting its occupants yet nimble enough to project its sporty drive.

Q4: What inspired the name 'JUKE'?

Weaver: To JUKE is to dodge and outwit – seems to fit the car!

About Nissan in Europe

Nissan has one of the most comprehensive European presences of any overseas manufacturer, employing more than 17,600 staff across locally based design, research & development, manufacturing, logistics and sales & marketing operations. Last financial year Nissan plants in the UK, Spain and Russia produced more than 675,000 vehicles including award-winning crossovers, small cars, SUVs, commercial vehicles and electric vehicles, including the Nissan LEAF, the world's most popular electric vehicle with 96 percent of customers willing to recommend the car to friends. Nissan now offers a strong line-up of 23 diverse and innovative models in Europe under the Nissan and Datsun brands.