R. Wayne Reynolds
"Land of Plenty" is a fine art version of the first sliding block mathematical puzzle. Invented in the 1870's and called The Fifteen Puzzle, it had movable squares, numbered 1-15 in a frame with 16 spaces. I replaced the numbers with my own abstract imagery, and turned the hand held puzzle into a vertical interactive wall sculpture. With this work, I invite the viewer to engage in the creative process with me. I believe that fine art can be more than a frozen image that just hangs on the wall. I give the viewer my permission to override a very old rule, DO NOT TOUCH THE ART. You can choose between problem solving and being creative, and that opens up a world of possibilities. It also changes your relationship with the artist significantly.
"Land of Plenty" has 16 uniquely designed panels, forming a cornucopia of possibilities. By removing one panel to create an open space, the viewer can slide any panel to any position on the grid. All panels can also be removed and rotated in four different directions, creating 16! x 4 to the 16th power, or 89 sextillion permutations. This image shows the original composition, and it is the only configuration where all four sides of every panel match exactly. Even with a "solved" photo as a guide, if every panel is scrambled and rotated, it is a very difficult and time consuming task to return all panels to their original location. False positive matches are common. To see a 28 second video go to rwrart.com and click on the Interactive page.