Re-Creating M.C. Escher’s Lizard #Tessellation

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M.C. Escher’s Lizards are by far the most popular of Escher’s tessellations. It can be seen gracing many multitudes of surfaces, legally or illegally. From tattoos, puzzles, belt buckles, car wraps, flooring or landscaping stones… My initial introduction to tessellations was through redrawing this lizard in its nested shape during a class on crystallography at Carleton U. That was a few decades ago, in 1988. But, as I keep on repeating (no pun), to draw a tessellation or to truly understand the structure behind it are two different things.

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Fifi at the Salon tessellation by Francine Champagne ©2016

Fifi at the Salon tessellation

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This tessellation is built using the Pm symmetry group – two alternating parallel mirrors, without any glides or rotations. Makes for a stacked look to the nested shapes. One vertical mirror down the lady and the other down the dog and shampoo bottle. Always wondered how HairStylist cut their own hair, awkward to cut your own, probably dangerous too. Well, I figured it out. “Let me cut my hair for me”. And it’s always nice to bring Fifi the dog with you to the Salon. What do you think Tina? Continue reading →