A normal stack of blocks? Just you wait... (Ghostkube/Erik Åberg)
It's no secret that we love LEGO — it's maybe the greatest toy of all time! But beyond all of the historical tributes, Star Wars tie-ins, and stop motion movies what we really love about these blocks is that they give people the chance to be creative. Sure, it's a toy. But it's also engineering and art.
Above all, it's a reminder that with a little ingenuity, there can be a lot more to a bunch of blocks than meets the eye.
Which brings us to our newest obsession: Ghostkube.
Wood that flows?
Ghostkube began when Swedish artist Erik Åberg started trying to figure out how to make Japanese "origami from wood instead of paper." In the video below, called Liquid Wood, you can see how Erik's experiment grew and changed over time.
At around :24, he's playing with sculptures made of dice. By 1:00, he's moved on to simple slats of wood. Around 2:00, full cubes begin appearing. The video starts slowly, but once you start watching them move, it's kind of hard to stop. And as the structures get more complex, with all of their joints hidden, the final shapes they take become more and more surprising.
Have a look below.
Cool, right?
As you can see, Erik's invention really begins to get mind-blowing once he uses the cubes, or Ghostkube. The endless variety of combinations, motion, and shapes from these simple cubes is really something. And apparently, it is something that the public will be able to buy pretty soon, too!
A Ghostkube crowdfunding site is up-and-running and orders are supposed to begin shipping this month. It might seem a little early to be thinking about holiday gifts, but this is such a wonderful mix of science and art that we couldn't resist telling you about it.
Watch the trailer for these sets below.
😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯
this is supercool, i can not wait to have one!