
Islamic art inspires stretchy, switchable materials - MichalSikora
http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-35818924
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skeuomorf
Of relevant interest: "Quasicrystals in medieval islamic architecture"
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rldnu9rNpH8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rldnu9rNpH8)

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jacobolus
While on the subject, this upcoming indie game based on Islamic art also looks
interesting:

[http://www.engare.design/drawing-tool/](http://www.engare.design/drawing-
tool/)

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DanBC
Here's a video of people making tiles for mosaic panels:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-n03ano-
Ak](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-n03ano-Ak)

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jacobolus
Wow. Now imagine tiling the floor, walls, ceiling, and outside façade of a
mosque using such handmade tiles. Insane amounts of human labor involved.

Your video sucked me into watching videos about tilemaking. :-)

This one is kind of neat:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Og6cTlwBTrk](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Og6cTlwBTrk)

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jdietrich
Along similar lines, origami techniques are being used to design folding
antennae and solar arrays for satellites.

[http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2014-277](http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2014-277)
[https://riunet.upv.es/bitstream/handle/10251/6461/PAP_MIURA_...](https://riunet.upv.es/bitstream/handle/10251/6461/PAP_MIURA_27.pdf)

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pfd1986
Shameless plugin for my own research:
[https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/38803060/html/files/nmat...](https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/38803060/html/files/nmat4327.pdf)

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jonah
Not only interesting, but beautiful as well!

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xufi
I agree. I just watched a documentary about Islamic Architecture a few days
ago and it was pretty fascinating. I didn't even realize how sites like the
Taj Mahal have so much artistic geometric balance in their interiors

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mark_edward
Do you have a link to a description of this documentary? I'd be interested in
getting my hands on it.

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agumonkey
More and more shape shifting structures are popping in mainstream.

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JavaScriptrr
Pretty amazing. The mathmetical structure in islamic art is really inspiring.
Curious to see what types of applications these materials could be used for.
Any thoughts?

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spriggan3
s/islamic/arabic or persian. Sometimes it feels like some western journalists
are clueless about the fact that this part of the world had an artistic
history before the creation of Islam.

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typon
It seems like you're clueless about Islamic art. The focus on geometry and
patterns in art in the Arab and Persian world is a direct result of Islamic
theology affecting society.

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dogma1138
Not really the origins "Islamic" geometrical art were actually Asian and
Indian arts espcially Buddhist arts that were brought back when Islam expanded
into Asia, much of it wans't even created by Muslims.

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wumpus
This is a classic disagreeing comment which is a false disagreement. The
parent to your comment did not claim anything about the origins of or
influences upon Islamic art. At best you're talking past the post you're
responding; at worst you're insulting a religion which currently has 1.6
billion followers. Please don't do either on HN. Thanks.

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dogma1138
Islamic art is by it's own definition is quite strictly non-religious, while
some in the west insist on calling it "Islamic" (in the same absurd way why
Indian numerals are known as Arabic numerals in the UK) it was anything but
"Islamic" in the religious sense of the way. Islamic art is the art that
prevailed Islam's ban on art naturalistic and depictive arts, allot of Hindu,
Buddhist and even Pagan motifs that built on their abstract nature to survive
as non descriptive/naturalistic art which was heavily focused on geometry and
symmetry which has already existed in the regions that Islam has spread into,
like Mandala
[https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=Mandala](https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=Mandala).

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SolarNet
_rabble_ proof _rabble_ aliens _rabble_

