Tessellate
Images of the Infinite
During a trip to Uzbekistan, I was struck by the wonderful Islamic tile designs on the mosques and madrassas. Often just a few tile designs are used and by rotating, flipping and repeating them, intricate patterns are created which are infinite in scale. This process, called tessellation, has a basis in mathematics and has been used in art (notably by MC Escher) as well as extensively in tiling and architecture. In fact, tessellation is all around us and is found in Nature where fractal patterns, such as those found in a single leaf, create predictable yet variable designs that are both aesthetically pleasing and calming for the mind. Garden design, in creating a human order from apparent chaos, often uses repeated geometric patterns, looking for harmony and beauty by connecting nature with the eternal.
I decided to experiment with tessellating my own photographs, initially ones I had taken in Uzbekistan. Simple schemes use a repeated square or rectangle, but more elaborate creations use triangles and hexagons. The images have a sense of symmetry and balance, perhaps perfection - but the final images are not perfect. Each one has a deliberate error, following the practice of Islamic art, some embroidery and rug making and Japanese wabi-sabi. The belief is that only a divine presence or perhaps Nature can create perfection and that human efforts are flawed.
All images are my own except for one which is made purely by Artificial Intelligence. It is possible to ask an AI app to make an image using just a few words, and in one case I created a tessellation using the result. AI has become an important discussion point in photography, as it can create a credible scene that never existed. Photography has always had a tricky relationship with truth, never more so now. One image below started from an AI creation. Drop me a note if you’d like to know which one!
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