Geometric Arrays - Allen Schill - Still Life Photography

fine art, sculpture, hanging, small drum-shaped sugar candies, colorful, pattern, clear resin, hexagonal

Hexagon with Pastiglie Leone, Jan. 2024. 11.8 x 10.3 x 1.2 cm.. 61 Pastiglie Leone embedded in clear resin. (id#1603)

Pastiglie Leone are small fruit-flavored sugar candies in soft pastel colors. Here are some arrayed within a hexagon in a regular pattern.

fine art, sculpture, hanging, small drum-shaped sugar candies, colorful, pattern, clear resin, square

Pastiglie Leone in Square Configuration, Oct.-Nov. 2023. 36 Pastiglie Leone embedded in clear resin. (id#1572)

Pastiglie Leone arrayed within a small square in a regular pattern.

Pastiglie Leone in Film Hexagon, Oct.-Nov. 2023. 10.9 x 9.3 x 1.0 cm.. 61 Pastiglie Leone embedded in clear resin. (id#1575)

Pastiglie Leone arrayed within a hexagon in a regular pattern.

Pastiglie Leone in Square Configuration, Nov.-Dec-2023. 81 Pastiglie Leone embedded in clear resin. (id#1577)

Pastiglie Leone arrayed within a large square in a regular pattern.

fine art, sculpture, hanging, opalescent beads, colorful, pattern, clear resin, hexagonal

127 Small Opalescent Beads in Hexagonal Configuration, April-May 2024. 11.0 x 9.4 cm. x 1.5 cm.. 127 opalescent beads embedded in clear resin. (id#1650)

Here the opalescent beads are embedded in clear resin in a hexagonal array.

127 Small Opalescent Beads in Hexagonal Configuration, April-May 2024. 11.0 x 9.4 cm. x 1.5 cm.. 127 opalescent beads embedded in clear resin. (id#1650)

Opalescent beads embedded in clear resin in a hexagonal array.

fine art, sculpture, hanging, opalescent beads, colorful, clear resin, round

Tiny Opalescent Beads in Round Configuration, Nov. 2023. 7.1 cm. diam. x 0.7 cm.. Small opalescent beads embedded in clear resin. (id#1571)

Here the opalescent beads are embedded in clear resin within a circular shape.

61 Medium Opalescent Beads in Hexagonal Configuration, Oct.-Nov. 2023. 10.7 x 8.4 x 1.2 cm.. 61 opalescent beads embedded in clear resin. (id#1578)

Opalescent beads embedded in clear resin in a hexagonal array.

61 Small Opalescent Beads in Hexagonal Configuration, Jan. 2024. 7.3 x 6.3 x 1.1 cm.. 61 opalescent beads embedded in clear resin. (id#1582)

Opalescent beads embedded in clear resin in a hexagonal array.

fine art, sculpture, hanging, glass marbles, colorful, pattern, clear resin, hexagonal

19 Cracked Marbles in Hexagonal Configuration, Feb-Mar. 2024. 8.6 x 7.6 x 1.8 cm.. 19 glass marbles embedded in clear resin. (id#1600)

Cracked marbles, embedded in clear resin, are in a hexagonal array. For this I reprised an experiment from when I was a kid - cracked marbles. Prepare a small potfull of ice water with plenty of ice cubes. Meanwhile, heat up a handful or two of marbles in a clean frying pan. When they are good and hot, dump them into the ice water, and they will fracture internally. A few might shatter, but most will remain whole, leaving internal fissures that are very pretty. (Use eye protection if you do this!)

fine art, sculpture, hanging, homeopathic tablets, colorful, pattern, clear resin, TV-screen shape

Homeopathic Tablets in TV screen shape, Feb.-Mar. 2023. 7.4 x 7.4 x 0,9 cm.. Homeopathic tablets embedded in tinted resin. (id#1550)

Using a plastic container with two straight siides and two curves sides, I poured a layer of resin and let it harden. Then, a thin layer of resin on which, once it got tacky, I positioned the little pills. Once that was hard, I poured another layer of resin, with small drops of colored resin at intervals around the pills. Then a final layer to cover everything.

fine art, sculpture, hanging, homeopathic tablets, colorful, pattern, clear resin, hexagonal

61 Homeopathic Tablets in Hexagonal Configuration, May 2024. 9.5 x 8.2 x 1.0 cm.. 61 homeopathic tablets embedded in tinted resin. (id#1648)

I poured a layer of resin into a hexagonal mold and let it harden. Then a thin layer of resin in which I positioned the little pills once it got a bit sticky. Once that was hard, I poured another layer of resin, with small drops of colored resin at intervals around the pills. Then a final layer to cover everything.

fine art, sculpture, hanging, glass corpuscles, colorful, pattern, clear resin, hexagonal

217 Colored Glass Corpuscles in Hexagonal Configuration (with black background), Oct. 2023-Jan. 2024. 11.0 x 9.8 x 0.7 cm.. 217 colored glass corpuscles embedded in clear resin. (id#1576)

I call them corpuscles because they are rounded on one side with a dimple on the other, like red blood corpuscles.

217 Colored Glass Corpuscles in Hexagonal Configuration (backlit), Oct. 2023-Jan. 2024. 11.0 x 9.8 x 0.7 cm.. 217 colored glass corpuscles embedded in clear resin. (id#1576)

The same piece as the previous one, but photographed with backlighting. Much easier to see the pattern in the configuration this way.

fine art, sculpture, hanging, multicolored plastic beads, colorful, clear resin, hexagonal

Faceted Multicolored Beads in Hexagonal Configuration (backlit), Feb.Mar-2024. 11.7 x 10.3 x 1.0 cm.. Colored plastic beads embedded in clear resin. (id#1601)

Faceted plastic beads of several colors. The hexagon allows the beads to fit close together with the least possible amount of space left over.

Faceted Multicolored Beads in Hexagonal Configuration (with white background), Feb.Mar-2024. 11.7 x 10.3 x 1.0 cm.. Colored plastic beads embedded in clear resin. (id#1601)

The same piece as the previous one, but photographed against white paper. The beads are arranged casually, avoiding any particular pattern.

fine art, sculpture, hanging, multicolored plastic stars, colorful, clear resin, hexagonal

Hexagon with Multicolored Plastic Stars, Feb. 2024. 11.0 x 9.7 x 0.9 cm.. Colored plastic star shapes embedded in clear resin. (id#1602)

Six-pointed star-shaped plastic beads, arranged randomly.

Geometric Arrays

These are arrangements of small objects in configurations that use the most natural possibilities. The hexagon is the most accommodating and space-efficient shape, like the honeycombs of bees. After that comes the square or chessboard configuration.

In some of the pieces, the objects are arranged according to a pattern, although this is less noticeable when the materials are subtly colored, such as the sugar candies. The opalescent beads are completely irregular and so impossible to arrange according to any strict pattern. These and a few others avoid any kind of regularity.

To display the translucent pieces in a window, I typically drill a tiny hole through a top corner, thread a wire or string through it, and suspend from a suction cup. The more opaque pieces are better suited for display on a shelf or tabletop.