.lissajous

A Lissajous curve, also known as Lissajous figure or Bowditch curve, is the graph of a system of parametric equations which describe complex harmonic motion. This family of curves was investigated by Nathaniel Bowditch in 1815, and later in more detail in 1857 by Jules Antoine Lissajous (for whom it has been named).

The appearance of the figure is highly sensitive to the ratio Φx/Φy. For a ratio of 1, the figure is an ellipse. Other ratios produce more complicated curves, which are closed only if Φx/Φy is rational.

A generative art project is WebGL using Threejs. A rework of .rhizome, also here on FXHash.

The artwork gets generative procedurally over time, so resizing the browser would imply the canvas to be cleared out (and what has been painted to be lost).

Variations include:

• Number of particles (in order of rarity)
• Intensity of connections between the particles
• Colors (white, one color or multiple colors, in order of rarity)
• The radius
• The ratio Φx/Φy