Art or Craft?

[Jonnycakes]

Origami is a very unique art form, however. In music it is common practice for one person to compose a work and for others to perform it. In origami, it is common practice for the artist to design (compose) and fold (perform) it. That is not to say that you are not an artist if you only fold others' designs, but in music the credit generally goes to the performer, not the composer for the performance. In origami the composer of the work is very important-much more emphasis is placed on the design. While the actual folding is certainly very important, it is somewhat discrediting for an origamist to fold others' designs and not their own as a sole demonstration of their artistry.

[Ondrej.Cibulka]

Actually, the music composer usually cannot be credit for the performance of his music, because he is dead. Composers usually prerformed their work as in today times - for just one example Don McLean. Performance of their work by other people call "cover".

Let make new origami terminology, something like "composer", "cover" etc. And someone can write thick book about it...

[Ondrej.Cibulka]

And I forgot to important think: thaks very much to Anna (and others) to her effort to explain me difference between craft and art. Thanks!

EDIT:
"craft" in Czech wiki is manual work for livelihood, for earning money to live. It is different from "folding with diagrams in my past-time". So I suggest to do not call origami "craft", but "hobby" (as master Harbrin).

[godnomis]

if you fold 1 crane, its a hobby, when you fold 100 its a craft, when you fold 1000 its a art.

[gordigami]

if you fold 1 crane, its a hobby, when you fold 100 its a craft, when you fold 1000 its a art.

I would respectfully disagree .
When you fold 1000 cranes, it's an assembly line .
When you fold one crane very carefully, with thought and respect for the designer, as well as the paper, then it may be art.

[godnomis]

takes 1000 times before you understand it, but some people need 4 life times.
i can fold one to perfection in 2 mins

[Jakeplusplus]

Up until Yoshizawa, it was definitely just a craft, but from him and on, it became so much more. You can not look at a work by Eric Joisel (God rest his soul) and call it a mere craft. If video game design is considered art (which I totally agree with) then so must origami. There is a point in a folders life, where the craft ends and art begins. I believe it is that first moment that you fold a model by someone else and look at it thinking "It would look so much better if I tweak this or shape that, etc." Origami is definitely original in this. Usually the technically taught aspects of and art come in after some initial creative attempts (perhaps with another exception to music-it can be very "creative" without any direction).

Basically art and craft.