Pattern at the boundaries of order

Abstract

Chaos, in the sense used by mathematicians and physicists, contains a beautiful co-mingling of order and disorder. Here, we consider the interplay between periodic order, and disorder, in both space and time. This boundary is considered in both mathematical terms, and in terms of our experiences of order and pattern in our everyday routines. Periodic spatial patterns can exist in two dimensions, and finite sections can be made on paper (drawings, designs). These two-dimensional patterns are described by the seventeen ‘wallpaper groups’, a mathematical classification also used to describe the structure of crystals found in nature. In this article, supported by discussion of disrupted, non-regular and quasiperiodic patterns, we present a series of Lucy’s drawings, showing how one periodic order can deform into another. The drawings attempt to represent experienced patterns (habits and routines) as decorative pattern.