Cover Image: Fractals

Fractals

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Member Reviews

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

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Jack Cleveland was a man in his 40s with lots of interests. Sadly enough he died in January 2020.
He lived with his parents for a long time and thus regularly worked on the home computer. That's where his mom found the digital art pictures that he made.
As she wanted to share these pieces of art with the world, this coffee table art book saw the light.

Apparently Jack Cleveland didn't know about Benoît Mandelbrot who invented the term 'fractals'.
But that's what the pictures in this book are: digital art based on fractal geometry.
Those who are familiar with fractals know how magnificent this natural phenomenon is.
And yes, I say 'natural' as this occurs in lots of things around us: plants, coastlines, …
If you want to see some examples of fractals or hear Benoït Mandelbrot tell about this phenomenon, you can take a look at my blog article (link visible in my Goodreads-review).

The book presentation of 'Fractals' was done by Jack Cleveland's mother.
At a certain moment, she mentions a song of Jonathan Coulton.
If you want to listen to the book presentation or to the song, you can take a look at my review on Goodreads (where direct links are included).

Jack Cleveland's book doesn't contain much explanation about fractals. Adding more extensive information could've been a way to inspire people who don't know this phenomenon yet and to enhance their appreciation of the pictures even more.
Although the number of pictures isn't that high (which is logical since Jack's premature death), the book contains some beautiful art. Some pictures even remind of Escher (one my of favourite artists).
Thus 'Fractals' may not be the right book for people who wish to learn more about the theory behind fractals, but it certainly forms a nice coffee table book.

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I received a free ARC of this title courtesy of #netgally, Jack Cleveland and the publishers in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved flicking through this coffee table picture book showing a range of abstract pictures and photographs of fractal images. The images are bright and mesmerising. There are a few themes with several images to compliment each. The art is exquisite and would appeal to anyone with a love of the arts, particularly modern works. A 5/5 very pleasing to the eye collection of masterpieces.

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I was a little at a loss when I picked up this book called Fractals, but as I opened and looked through the pages I was throw by the vibrant colours and designs full of movement and shape. This is my first look at this type of art. The book explains it as "Fractal is essentially a never ending pattern - fractal geometry is art reflecting patterns found in nature ......". " It is not computer generated but made using computer graphics" All very new to me but extremely beautiful pieces of art printed in this book. There are over 100 full pages of beautiful computer graphics, many of which I would love on my wall. As an art gallery, this book is amazing.

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Well this book was not what I expected, and that's a good thing. There's a bunch of fractal images here - many reminding me of 90s and 00s era screensavers - with appealing colors. I would have liked there to be more to this book - it's fairly short - but I did enjoy looking through it, even though cover to cover only took me a few minutes.

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This stunning book will offer inspiration to all students of geometric and computer design. The author’s application of color theory makes this volume a gift that can be of use for many, many years. A question I have involves the definition of “fractals” which I understand to be geometric designs of ever-repeating sub-elements. The most common example is the fern: the overall shape is repeated in each smaller segment, which is again repeated in the still smaller units. I have trouble seeing this shape-repeated-within-a-shape in Mr. Cleveland’s gorgeous designs but that may be a failure on my part.

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The art in this book is utterly gorgeous and I had no idea that you could make so many different kinds of art based on fractals. It would have been great to understand more about the math and the process behind each picture, but I loved that this was a way to honor the artist's work after his death and I understand that that context was lost.

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Do you know what a fractal is?⠀

A fractal is a never-ending pattern. Fractals by Jack Cleveland is a coffee table book of fractal images. The author manipulated abstract mathematical equations to generate fractal images using a software program called Bryce. Bryce used a feedback loop to repeat the pattern. The author’s life-long love of nature and technology has led to this book.⠀

Looking at the beautiful fractal images in this book made me realize mathematics isn’t just numbers, it can also be made into art. Nature itself has mathematical equations embedded in it and is waiting for us to discover more. ⠀

A few fractal images made me scream out ‘wow’ in my head. A few of my favorites in the book are Brahman eye, birds of a feather, and moonlight. Looking at the fractal image of moonlight was interesting because I learned that moonlight can be expressed by a mathematical equation.⠀

Unfortunately, the author has passed away before the book was completed. His mother Pat Cleveland published this book. ⠀

Fractals is a ‘modern’ coffee table book for the geeky art lover. ⠀

Thank you to @netgalley and @anamcara.press for the eARC.

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I think that Fractal pieces are quite interesting in the very fact that although they can look quite disordered or chaotic, there is actually order. They can be very calming and can engage parts of your brain that other visual art does not. This short book is a showing of pieces by Jack Cleveland who it seems sadly passed away prior to the book's completion, it is lovely that it was still published and although it doesn't take away from viewing the mathematical art itself, it would have been nice to have seen some of his own thoughts on the pieces and their creation included. I was particularly drawn to the piece "Moonlight" and feel I could look at it and sense the ripples of the water moving. I wish there were more pieces or more detail as this book was quite short but I was appreciative of the sharing of Jack's art and the inclusion of a brief biography of his life and environmental interests.

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I really enjoy the scientific and artistic aspect of fractals, which drew me to this title. There were a few images that I found beautiful, and many that didn't resonate much with me (eye of the beholder). But it is nice that there was a variety of images to peruse. The artist is very talented. I wish there were a little more text concerning how the images were created; the introduction was brief. Thank you to NetGalley and Anamcara Press for making this available to review.

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Fractals are frequently considered to be one of the many complexities of the world, oft better left to the mathematicians. It is so easy to forget the role they play in artwork, yet Jack Cleveland's work, pictured in Fractals: Fractal Images forces readers and viewers alike to acknowledge how tightly woven art and math can be. The images within are all computer generated, and yet there is magic to each and every one of them. Something surreal, yet familiar. There is little explanation for Cleveland's work. Instead, the art speaks for itself, becoming something that is rooted in the very foundations of science, and yet still feeling wholly from another world. Cleveland's work follows a brief introduction, one that explains the nature of Fractals, and the reason why there is little notation regarding his work. Mainly, that he is no longer present to speak on it himself. Yet even without those words, his voice resonates strongly here. Cleveland's work showcases a variety of scenes, colors, and styles – providing a in-depth view of fractal art.

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Thank you to NetGalley for letting me preview this art book. Although most of the art was interesting, the ones I enjoyed most were the more organic looking ones. This book would be enjoyed by people interested in computer art.

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Enchantment with fractals is baked into my being. It's not just me, is it? Jack Cleveland's fascination included the creation of digital fractal images. From scratch (the editors say he was apparently unaware of Mandelbrot's equation.) Unfortunately that's about all the information given about the images and their creation. There is no hint of a date range, which I would have found helpful. The images don't all look like portions of the Mandelbrot set and that variety is welcome. Most are full page. A few are smalller. They tend not to have the detail the or vibrancy of the fractals we see on our monitors. There is no way to know if this was the creator's choice or technical limitations of the period in which they were made. They are pleasant images, but not mesmerizing.

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i received a digital copy of this book via NetGalley and was blown away by the pieces of art that the author has created. I have always been fascinated by fractals that are present in abundance all around us in mother nature. So, when I got access to the book, I was keenly looking forward to seeing the art work.

This is one of those art books that one needs to keep close to the favorite coffee place and relooks at the art work every now and then. Some of the art works presented in the book are so good that i would love to have them hanging in my living room.

It's sad that the artist has left us already. But kudos to the team who have put together the works and are releasing the book.

If you love fractals, you will love this book.

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This is excellent. I like fractals and fractal art, and these images are quite compelling and varied. Many would make great wall art! A huge amount of time and computing power must have gone into creating these engaging images. Highly recommended.

Thanks very much for the ARC for review!!

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Fractals came into my little world long before computers did, through the intense art of MC Escher. His painstaking, extraordinarily detailed woodcuts are a wonder to behold. The word fractal was invented by Benoit Mandelbrot, who pioneered and promoted the mathematical aspects of fractals. He, more than anyone, is identified with the word fractal.

Jack Cleveland worked in computers, and apparently without knowing the work of Benoit Mandelbrot, leveraged software to produce infinitely repeating patterns – in other words, fractals. His art is very sci-fi looking. A lot of mysterious orbs and highly reflective surfaces. His works are “familiar yet fantastical”.

The way it works is that computer is programed to continuously reiterate an instruction, endlessly rendering the results. It’s not just for pretty graphics, either. Stephen Wolfram is using them to attempt to find the pattern behind the entire universe, from it birth and into the future. He has global contest underway to find that ultimate instruction.

Jack Cleveland died of heart failure early this year, at the age of 47. His mother, Pat, put this coffee table book together to spread his art to all.

David Wineberg

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