Customer Reviews

M. C. Escher ® Kaleidocycles

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Escher's cunningly planned magic in geometric expression is fully explained and clarified in this mesmerising book. It is a must for the skilled mathmetician or graphic designer. This book includes seventeen full-color models that begin as two-dimensional designs and fold into three dimensional kaleidocycle forms.

"A kaleidocycle is a closed chain of tetrahedra that can cycle endlessly through a center hole. ? Best known for his strangely realistic depictions of things that defy the laws of physics, Maurits Cornelis Escher became interested in problems of repetition and symmetry after traveling to the Alhambra, a 14th century Moorish castle in Granada, Spain. Fascinated by the periodic (i.e. regularly recurrent) designs of the castle's mosaics, he began to pursue the idea that a plane can be divided into uniform, interlocking figures, forming a pattern that repeats itself at set intervals, theoretically to infinity. Instead of simply combining abstract shapes to produce a pattern, however, Escher decided to use more meaningful figures--shells and starfish, angels and devils, for example--images that could be connected not just graphically but also conceptually. Kaleidocycles, created by mathematician Doris Schattschneider and graphic designer Wallace Walker, explores the three-dimensional implications of Escher's two-dimensional periodic designs. With a little glue, you can easily assemble the enclosed models--all printed with repeating patterns derived from the artist's original drawings--into various kaleidocycles and geometric solids. In doing so, you will transform Escher's beautiful designs into true examples of infinite repetition: the interlocking images will wrap endlessly over the surfaces of the three-dimensional objects. ? Kaleidocycles contains a 48-page book with over 80 reproductions and diagrams, assembly instructions, and a fascinating discussion of the geometric principles and artistic challenges underlying Escher's designs and their transformation to three-dimensional models; and seventeen die-cut, scored, three-dimensional models (11 kaleidocycles and 6 geometric solids) Cigar box-style packaging, size: 9-1/2 x 12-1/4 x 1-1/2". [Refers to revised edition:] ISBN: 0-7649-3110-5

KALEIDOCYCLES 3-D MODELS ONLY
"Purchase an extra set of the 17 models for each additional participant. Assembly instructions are not included. ISBN: 0-7649-3207-1."--? Pomegranate

My 9-year-old son and I had tremendous fun assembling the models in this kit. Each of the models in the kit contains an adaptation of Escher's periodic design in a way that the geometric solid is continously covered with it. Through a unique personal experience, my son learned what tetrahedron, octahedron, dodecahedron, cuboctahedron and kaleidocycle look like. This is the best project we ever worked on.

This book is great for teachers in art as well as math. The book comes with full detailed explanations as well as separate sheets to make copies. There are many different designs to choose from. Excellent source of reference.

Want to get your kids or students interested in math? Let them put together a geometric solid covered with interlocking trolls or other tesselated designs, then hang them from the playroom ceiling! Your kids will never get over it!

Beautifully colored, easily put together. and very, very neat...

If you are as fascinated with the graphics of Escher as I am; you'll be entertained,amazed and engrossed with this 'kit' which allows you to assemble and hold these wonderful models of intrigueing mathematics , coupled with the graphic art and figures of the master himself; M.C.Escher.
It is one thing to look at Escher's magnificient work in 2-dimension; but it is another experience entirely, to hold these 3-dimensional models and view the figures and patterns as you turn as fold these models on themselves,
One of the other reviewers talked about creating additional models; and that is obviously possible ,because there is all the information needed to do that; right here in the book.
I have had this kit for some time ; but hadn't actually constructed any of the models. I recently was told about a man who constructed ball and stick models. I contacted him,and visited him to see his models. I brought along with me a book ,
"Polyhedron Models" by Magnus Wenninger .This is an outstanding book covering the subject as well as 119 models. The man I was visiting ,had the book and even knew its author. This book deals with models whose surfaces are flat and made of cardboard or if desired ,other materials. To see what these fascinating models look like, look them up on the net under "Magnus Wenninger".
The man I visited constructs similar models;but uses only wooden balls and sticks. Think of those chemistry models of compounds,and you can imagine how beautiful and interesting they can be. All models begin with one of the known uniform polyhedra and from them the stellated models are formed. The variations are in the many millions.
Anyone who has much interest in this sort of stuff will find an excellent chapter ,Polyhedra,in "Mathematical Recreations and Essays" by W.W. Rouse Ball,a real classic in the subject of Mathematical Recreations.
The man I went to visit has been working on these models for many,many years. He has created his own techniques and even an intrigueing appratus to make the holes in the balls. The exactness is so critical,that making them by hand would be terribly difficult. To date he has made about 500 0f these ball and stick models.
So, after my visit,it was a real joy to sit down and construct some models.

This is the bet presentation and best manufactured kaleidocycles that I had bought. Sent in a very good and fast way.

I have been looking for this kit for some time but couldn't remember what these little models were called until I stumbled across a reference to them elsewhere. I had this kit as a teenager and just loved it; so glad to see this is still in print. Off to go order a set. Maybe an extra for gift giving.

Now this book has intricated patterns and complicated designs. It took me a long time to develop one. Once I got the hang of it I thought students how to do them and they really enjoyed.If you are into art this is a great book for projects and designs

The basic ideas in this book have been an inspiration to me for years. I had just enough background in engineering and drafting to realize that I could duplicate the basic patterns here to create my own little twisty things whenever I want to produce an amazing surprise. With color photocopying on cardstock, and by laminating photographic paper which was too flimsy to work with, it has been possible for me to create hundreds of these converging convolutions of my own design within the last six years.

In the edition I have, a design called "Heaven and Hell" is discussed on page 44. The basics are pretty obvious, like "wingtips of angels and devils are joined to form the outline of right triangles contained in a square." Overall, what is illustrated is that "Interlocking motifs depicting opposites" can be used to emphasize "the inability to recognize one without the other." This kind of playing with opposite valuations makes the most sense in a context like jokes,! where only people who dare to get in trouble would try anything which might be considered too personal. I was younger when I thought that these things might be a lot of fun, and I have given away most of the items that I was able to produce from the book, while I still have a vast quantity of the ones which I designed myself. The main reason I know better now (the ones in the book are not as intrusive) is because my own personal applications have often encountered morality on a level that is frightening to particular individuals. I should refrain from offering any samples of how a Pop Up Poem Book could make some aspect of a person (or worse, a line someone said which would be perfect in a poem) into poetry in motion, but such a person might become too self-conscious to continue to be subject to such scrutiny. It happens. As with my reviews, my own designs try to reflect some aspect of myself, as when they contain some kind of surprise, and I've started calling them nuker!plunkers instead of convolutions, so people have the opportunity to use their imaginations in considering what I might be giving them when I tell them, "Have a nukerplunker."