Mirror – Escher’s Impossible World

Author: Bruno
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2002-10-01
Features: This book uses beautiful language and exquisite images to depict the life, creations, and understanding of the world-famous printmaker M.C. Escher. Many of Escher's prints stem from paradoxes, illusions, and dual meanings. Interlocking circles are a recurring theme in his work. He strove to achieve completeness in his scenes, disregarding their inconsistencies—or bringing together what could never be present simultaneously. Through this, he created a captivating "world of the impossible." Escher's creation of the "world of the impossible" was highly successful, earning him numerous admirers worldwide, including many renowned scientists such as the Nobel laureate Chen Ning Yang, who greatly appreciated Escher's artistic works. Once, a woman told me on the phone, "Mr. Escher, I am completely enchanted by your works. Your print 'Lizards' so vividly depicts the process of rebirth. I replied, 'Madam, if that's how you see it, so be it.' This witty and humorous answer came from the famous Dutch printmaker Maurits Cornelis Escher. The complex polysemy of his works is beyond the reach of hasty and simplistic explanations. Long before computer-generated three-dimensional images stunned the public, Escher was already a master of the third dimension. His lithograph 'M?bius Strip I' dates back to 1946. Bruno Ernst chose this title for the book to emphasize the magical allure of Escher's works for readers forever. Over the course of a year, Ernst visited Escher every week, systematically discussing his entire body of work. These discussions led to a friendship, allowing Ernst to intimately engage with Escher's life and his conceptual world. Ernst's account is detailed and accurate, and has been reviewed and corrected by the artist himself. Escher's works are impossible to categorize. They cannot be fairly evaluated from a purely scientific, psychological, or aesthetic perspective. Why did he create these images? How did he construct them? What preliminary research did he conduct before completing his works? What connections exist between the images he created? This book, with Escher's life, 250 illustrations, and explanations of numerous mathematical problems, provides answers to these kinds of questions. Moreover, the book is based on firsthand sources. It has been translated into over ten languages.