Jaali Fellow 3
Jaali Fellow 3
2022
6.5" x 9" x 7"
Cherry / Maple / Walnut and basswood
Enjoy the many symmetries of this cute, shape-shifting little fellow.
The Jaalihedra™ Sculpture series combines polyhedral shapes with perforated patterns inspired by jaali - decorative sandstone screens commonly found in the forts and castles of Northwestern India.
Each of the "Three Jaali Fellows" has the exterior shape of a polyhedron with the fancy-schmancy name of a "rhombic dodecahedron." (All this means is that it has 12 faces, all of which are rhombuses. Those Greeks and their fancy words!) Their modest size makes them perfect as a decoration on a desk top or a bookshelf.
Each face is decorated with a pattern featuring 5-pointed and 10-pointed stars. In the case of Jaali Fellow 3, the faces are made out of three different colors of wood, each with central rosette inserts of a contrasting color of wood.
This sculpture can lie directly on any flat surface on any of its identical faces, and casts dramatic shadows when brightly lit. One fascinating thing about this shape is that it appears square from one set of angles, and like a hexagon from another set of angles.