M.C. Escher and the History of Tesselations
The Dutch artist Maurits C. Escher was a draftsman, book illustrator, tapestry designer, and muralist, but his primary work was as a printmaker. Born in Leeuwarden, Holland on June 17,1898, the son of a civil engineer, Escher spent most of his childhood in Arnhem. Aspiring to be an architect, Escher enrolled in the School for Architecture and Decorative Arts in Haarlem. While studying there from 1919 to 1922, his study shifted from architecture to drawing and printmaking upon the encouragement of his teacher. In 1924 Escher married Jetta Umiker, and the couple settled in Rome to raise a family. They lived in Italy until 1935, when political turmoil forced them to move to Switzerland and then Belgium. In 1941 German troops occupied Brussels and Escher returned to Baarn, Holland where he lived and worked until his death on March 27, 1972, at the age of 73 years.The main subjects of Escher's early art are Rome and the Italian countryside. While living in Italy from 1922 to 1935, he spent spring and summer months traveling and making drawings. Later, Escher developed the drawings into prints. After Escher left Italy in 1935, his interest shifted from landscape to something he described as "mental imagery". This was a result of a se
In spite of his lack of training in mathematics, Escher was influenced by developments in science and mathematics. Many of his works of art that involve topology, optical illusions, tessellations, and other advanced mathematical topics were created with mathematicians such as Roger Penrose, J. F. Schouten, H S. M. Coxeter, and J. W. Wagenaar. Escher truly loved his work and today people can understand the beauty of his designs. Artists and designers who have experimented with tessellations have probably unwittingly performed some mathematical research. M. C. Escher stands out as an example of such an artist and designer. Although Escher did not have a strong background in mathematics, his careful explorations of tilings of the plane were extensive and representative of mathematical research. In fact, Escher once said, "Although I am absolute innocent of training or knowledge in the exact sciences, I often seem to have more in common with mathematicians than with my fellow artists" (Escher 9). "While drawing I sometimes feel as if I were a spiritualist medium, controlled by the creatures which I am conjuring up. It is as if they themselves decide on the shape in which they choose to appear" (Escher 8). cond visit in 1936 to the Alhambra in Granada, Spain. The tiles of the Moorish architecture suggested flattened patterns and interlocking forms. Starting in the 1920s, the idea of metamorphosis or one shape turning into something different became one of Escher's favorite themes.
Some topics in this essay:
Granada Spain,
Wagenaar Escher,
Johannes Kepler,
Japanese Chinese,
Visions Symmetry,
Rome Italian,
Arts Haarlem,
Jetta Umiker,
Spatial Sense,
Baarn Holland,
repeating pattern,
granada spain,
x-ray crystallography,
tilings plane,
alhambra granada spain,
tessellated patterns,
italy 1935,
found cultures,
waste material,
artist maurits escher,
mathematical research,
mathematical research escher,
alhambra granada,
tessellation repeating pattern,
floors walls ceilings,
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Approximate Word count = 1179
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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