Parachute is the brand name for a line of learning toys and objects of curiosity I have designed. Each object explores the universal way in which play inspires the imagination and enhances learning, and most of the objects in this line are modern twists on classic toys. I chose the word parachute because it evokes […]
Also inspired by the oloid, these wooden pieces encourage imagination, motor skills, and a sense of balance, aesthetics, and physics. The pieces can be assembled to create rolling objects with differing motion properties depending on the pairings of circles and ellipses but can also be assembled vertically for an endless variety of constructions.
I have been exploring kite making for the past few years. I am inspired both by Kenneth Snelson’s pioneering tension/compression structures as well as more traditional kite-making approaches. The various kites shown here are made with bamboo and ripstop, or carbon fiber and cubitech sail cloth.
I am very interested in defining movement in space over time to create the building blocks of new forms and ideas. For this sculpture, I began observing sequences by keying points on the physical model of the oloid quartet as it rolled. Then, in 3-d motion software and with the aid of my thesis advisor, […]
This sculpture takes the oloid in another direction. Attaching an ellipse and a circle at an angle other than 90° results in a form that rolls back and forth like a pendulum. These process shots show multiple iterations and experiments explored to find the optimal boomerang-like motion. The more disparate the centers of gravity between […]
This object is based on the oloid, a geometric form discovered by German mathematician and sculptor Paul Schatz in 1929. An oloid is a convex hull formed by two identical disks intersecting each other halfway at right angles. When rolled, the oloid has a unique swinging, smooth movement. Practical applications for a single oloid are […]
