Khushbu Kshirsagar
Khushbu is an Engineer, Educator and Maker interested in designing
hands-on learning experiences at an intersection of engineering
design, mathematics and art. She holds a masters degree in S.T.E.M.
Education, with a concentration in Mathematics Education. Her work
follows an interdisciplinary approach to making with a focus on
designing math manipulatives that spark wonder and curiosity. She
designs educational technologies in the form of interactive mechanical
art, paper zines and postcards; with the intention to take one away
from the computer screen, and to enable accessibility.
Inspired by Hoberman's sphere - an isokinetic sculpture that
resembles a geodesic dome but is capable of folding down to a
fraction of its normal size, Hex-Flex is a kinetic sculpture that
draws fascinating connections with math as a part of its making
process. The design is a hands-on manifestation of hexagons, their
properties and mechanical movements. All the pieces in the
sculpture stem from a circle of radius 'r' that can be inscribed
in a hexagon. The connecting pieces joining the corresponding
hexagons in motion are obtained by joining every other vertex of
the previously obtained hexagon. The base of the sculpture also
results from the dimensions of the hexagons and the connecting
pieces, demonstrating relative interconnectedness.