Following the rule of self-similarity, cracking gives a sense of the larger whole

Abstract

By recalling its source shape recursively, cracking generates a geometry of self-similarity. For instance, a river delta has variously scaled “triangles” that are each “cracked” by the iterative and aggregate process of fluvial erosion. The crack patterns in dry mud or paint show a similar recursion of shapes in at least two visible scales. Whether it is the dynamics of water channeling through sediment to produce a delta or heat and dryness causing paint to peel, cracking is a distinct action performed through materials.