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THE ENGINEER
These four images were designed to be framed in a row as shown here. They trace the development of an engineer who, as he grows from infancy to maturity, builds the same impossibility with the materials appropriate to his age ....……..
………….. watch his drinks too!
The figures, be they teddy bear, Lego men, origami or wooden are photographed - as are the cups and accessories. The impossible objects were created entirely in the computer in 2D using photoshop. The third image depicts an object made with Meccano, a wonderful construction kit that sadly has all but disappeared now. It was a huge success in post World War II England and was an important part of my childhood. The origami figure was folded by me from a design by the Spanish origami artist Miguel Salvatella.
Although attributed to Roger Penrose who produced it in the 1950’s, the tribar had in fact been produced earlier in 1934 by one of the pioneers of illusion, the Swedish artist Oscar Reutersvärd . For those interested in such things - the tribar is a Möbius surface. If you trace a path along its its surface you will return to where you started having traced every face along the way. It is the eqivalent of a Möbius strip with a triple twist. If you cut along the edges of an impossible triangle you end up with triple linked rings.
CAMBIGUITIES is the official site of illusion creator David Macdonald. All images strictly copyright of the artist.