The original horse shape is maintained and shifted across the surface to create other winged horses that form the tessellation. 105 (Pegasus), 1959, in which only one shape is used. This can be seen in Regular division of the plane no. How have the horses been placed to repeat the pattern? Have they been flipped or turned?Ī translation is when an image is preserved and moved in any direction across a surface without turning or flipping it. Translation, reflection and rotation are ways to transform a shape in a tessellation. In maths a shape is considered transformed when it is shifted from one position to another while maintaining its exact image. To create many of these tessellations, Escher used mathematical transformations. He referred to his tessellations as ‘regular division of the plane.’ Over three decades, he created more than 130 tessellations incorporating repeating motifs of creatures and figures. Surprisingly, Escher didn’t do well at mathematics in school, but his complex designs have inspired many mathematical thinkers.Įscher was intrigued by tessellations – patterns that repeat without gaps or overlapping. Escher (1898 – 1972) is well known, but initially it was mathematicians and scientists who were most interested in Escher’s work. Although I am absolutely without training or knowledge, I often seem to have more in common with mathematicians than my fellow artists.

Black white fish tessellation