The Mandelbrot Project

At the time it’s annoying when it feels like something you made hasn’t worked. But the things that don’t work are the things that teach you the most. Because you know what needs to change! During this process of making and testing, reflecting and developing, the Mandelbrot Project generated a methodology around this process of exploration in search of new discoveries. All parts of the process, including the collaboration element, became part of this methodology. 

structural collaboration, mechanisms with geometrical motion, calculations of form derived from the mathematical rules of nature.  Can we spark an emotional connection between people by designing methods for them to activate / be engaging with the same structural mechanism simultaneously? 

Hugely inspirational people. Raffy loves to look at the aeroplanes fly across the sky, and watch the birds singing in the trees. Raffy has limited verbal communication and often uses sign language. Mish, Raffy and family have agreed to try out TMP's first ever Discovery Box... P H I #001! 

Divine proportion in form and in sound, shapes within shapes in fractal geometrics, what spins? what dings? What naturally intrigues and inspires our minds to create waves of excitement sparking human connection?

All components have a certain relativity to each other. The Golden Ratio, Nature's Divine Proportion. Action, reaction. No part of any design process stands alone. It all feeds in to the evolution of ideas. Just as one cog's teeth lock into another one's as it turns, any idea made physical leads to another five springing to mind. In other words, it's all connected. 

How can we spark emotional connections using physical connectivity? Relative motion, action reaction, mechanical relationships. When I turn this lever it sets off this circuit of cogs, which moves this and pushes this which drops a ball onto your lap. Now it's your turn to take the ball and roll it down the tube to push your lever which starts the whole process again but doing the other direction...

Exploring natural patterns manifested in proportion, from one part to the next. 1:1.618... The Golden Ratio inevitably re-creates itself in everything that we do, irrelevant of whether we notice it or not. Chaos cannot be without order and order cannot be without chaos. 

Thank you so much to the speech therapy team at StoneBay School, Broadstairs, for letting us explore and learn from your collection of Spinny Twirly Things. Most of these designs either reveal invisible form of forces, the golden ratio, sacred geometry, or repeat geometrical motion. 

The Duo- Xylo, like many of the Mandelbrot Project's collaborative instruments, is designed to be played by two people, one on each side. This brings a collaborative element and sharing the interaction. 

New ways of connecting potatoes (and minds!)

cogs turning cogs turning cogs, physical relativity, motion connection , sharing motion in space and time...

Laser Cut Spirals Geometrical motion through space and time creates these patterns through the acrylic in the laser cutter. Using CAM to draw using algorithms. 

- open-use design allows autistic person to show you how they want to use it / what they want to do with this object