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Harmonograph Project Summer 2011

Summer 2011

The harmonograph is a mechanical apparatus that employs pendulums to create a geometric image. The drawings created typically are Lissajous curves and are really complex in many cases. The devices appeared in the 19th century and became really popular in 1890. Hugh Blackburn a professor of mathematics at the university of Glasgow is believed to be the ocial inventor of the machine. Many of the drawings in this compilation where produced by the harmonograph machine which was constructed from scratch by some multivariable calculus students over summer 2011 at Southern Illinois College at Belleville. The instrument draws pictures of musical harmonies, linking sight and sound. The machine itself is simply operated by giving it some momentum, and friction and gravity does the rest. Enjoy the beautiful pictures that were created and if you are interested in the construction, follow this link http://www.karlsims.com/harmonograph/index.html. The credits of the construction are due to Karl Sims Vignon Oussa