Inspirations: Art of M.C. Escher

Two years ago, a Spanish filmmaker Cristóbal Vila shot an exquisite short movie “Nature by Numbers“, which captured the ways in which mathematical concepts like Fibonacci Sequence and Golden Number exist in nature. Vila has now returned with even more magnificent film called “Inspirations”, which tries to imagine what M.C. Escher’s workplace might have looked like.

Since you are probably well aware of M.C. Escher and his work by now, you may jump straight to playing the film. But be sure to pay close attention, and see how many references to great mathematical problems, puzzles, and optical illusions we have featured in the past you can count. Each one of the objects found in this film has an interesting story behind it – for example, Seven Bridges of Königsberg is a historically notable problem in mathematics. Same goes for Wheats and Chessboard story, one that talks about invention of chess.

Then there is The Great Wave off Kanagawa, Da Vinci’s Self Supporting Bridge, etc… Let’s see how many great stories and puzzles can you find! Be sure to share your findings in the comments section below, as I’m more than eager to see which ones I might have missed! BTW this video has provided me with endless inspiration, specially when it comes to decorating my office in days to come ;)

“What things would surround an artist like him, so deeply interested in science in general and mathematics in particular.” – Cristóbal Vila