INSPIRATION BEHIND POLYHEDRONS

When expressed in ceramic form, polyhedrons become art, which can be functional (vessels) or standalone art (a creative expression of physical forms). The polyhedrons are often glazed in earth tones that mimic the natural beauty of our home—Earth. The diversity of shapes is huge, perhaps infinite. 

 

Of particular interest for me are those polyhedrons that take the form of Platonic Solids, which were identified by the great philosophers Theaetetus, Pythagoras, Euclid, and Plato, several thousand years ago. These thinkers noted that a small number of polyhedrons—only five total—have unique properties:  identical faces of regular polygons, the same number of faces meet at each vertex, edges meet at the same internal angle, and the vertices inscribe a sphere. Of these five shapes that exist in Nature, four were assigned the elements of Life (fire, land, air, and water), and the fifth Solid, the dodecahedron, represents the Universe or the Heavens or Ether. See the images below. Are they not amazing?

 

Many more polyhedrons exist and fall into certain classes of shapes. Archimedean solids, for example, have regular polygons as faces, with each vertex surrounded by the same faces. As with Platonic solids, the shapes are complex and super interesting to consider. Building these polyhedrons requires clay slabs, a way to measure angles accurately, beveling tools and patience. The outcomes are well worth it!