Bridges 2026 Exhibition of Mathematical Art, Craft, and Design
Henriette-Sophie Lipschütz, Ulrich Reitebuch
Artists
Henriette-Sophie Lipschütz
Ph.D. student
Mathematics Department, Freie Universität
Berlin, Germany
Ulrich Reitebuch
Freie Universität Berlin
Berlin, Germany
Statement
Ulrich Reitebuch and Henriette Lipschütz are both mathematicians active in the field of discrete differential geometry. Next to research, they are interested in investigating connections between mathematics and the arts where they focus on geometric and symmetric structures and patterns. Next to creating illustrations digitally, both of them enjoy handcrafting examples by making them from paper, wood, thread or color.
Artworks
Hitomezashi—One Piece to Make Them All
61.0 x 50.0 x 70.5 cm
plywood, Plexiglas, mirrors
2026
We invite the visitors to explore the space of hitomezashi patterns with our jigsaw. The pieces are placed on Plexiglas on top of a box. Both, the jigsaw and the box, are made from plywood, colored in the classical indigo and white. Two mirrors allow to simultaneously inspect the patterns on both, the front and the back side. All pieces are copies of the same prototile, shaped such that any hitomezashi pattern can be made, and any assembled jigsaw shows a valid hitomezashi pattern. Front and back of the piece look exactly the same. So, indeed, one piece suffices to make them all.