Tessellation Pattern Design and Drawing

Cardstock for creating the template shape

Scissors

Tape

Large paper for the final tessellation

Pencil

Colored pencils or markers

Cut a square from cardstock, about 3 by 3 inches. This is your starting shape.

Cut a shape out of the left side of the square — a bump, a curve, or an irregular notch. Save the cut piece.

Slide the cut piece to the right side of the square and tape it in the exact same vertical position. The left indent now has a matching bump on the right.

Do the same with the top and bottom. Cut from the top, tape to the bottom in the exact same horizontal position.

Your square has transformed into a unique, modified shape. Trace it onto paper with a pencil.

Slide the template so it interlocks with the traced shape — the bumps fit into the indents like puzzle pieces. Trace again. Continue across the page.

Fill the entire page with interlocking tracings. They should fit together with zero gaps and zero overlaps.

Add details inside each shape to turn them into recognizable figures — eyes, wings, scales, legs. Use alternating colors for a vibrant, Escher-like design.

The cut-and-tape step is the mathematical key. Moving a cut from one side to the opposite side guarantees the shapes will tessellate.

Start with small, simple modifications. A tiny bump is easier to tessellate than a complex, elaborate cut.

M.C. Escher is the master of tessellation art. Look at his work for inspiration — his lizards, birds, and fish tessellations are legendary.

This is real mathematical art. Tessellations are studied in geometry, crystallography, and architecture.

Color adjacent shapes in different colors (two colors minimum) so the interlocking pattern is visible. Without color contrast, the shapes blend together.