About the Work

“Originally inspired by the stair step forms found in Bismuth crystals, Tendrilous reveals a special kind of patterning of right-angle spirals. This behavior is the result of a specific type of growth over time. In my process, I developed these forms from outward to inward, which is self-limiting; eventually running out of room. Upon consuming all available resources, the process halted. Nature is full of this kind of growth, both living and nonliving.  The appearance of helixes (helices) is an illusion, as there are none present.” – Michael McGinnis

“Originalmente inspirado en las formas de escalones que se encuentran en los cristales de bismuto, Tendrilous revela un tipo especial de patrón de espirales en ángulo recto. Este comportamiento es el resultado de un tipo específico de crecimiento a lo largo del tiempo; en mi proceso, desarrollé estas formas de afuera hacia adentro, lo cual es autolimitante; eventualmente quedándose sin espacio. Al consumir todos los recursos disponibles, el proceso se detuvo, la naturaleza está llena de este tipo de crecimiento, tanto vivo como no vivo; la aparición de hélices (hélices) es una ilusión, ya que no hay ninguna.” – Michael McGinnis

About the Artist

Michael McGinnis is an artist living in Sebastopol, California, and has been teaching sculpture and design for 36 years at Santa Rosa Junior College. His interactive Superplexus sculptures are in collections across the globe, and have been exhibited in Sweden, Germany, Poland, England, Australia, Russia, and across the USA.

In Sonoma County, Michael has permanent outdoor sculptures installed on the Sebastopol Library and at SRJC. He also designs and fabricates interactive museum exhibits. He created an extensive set of exhibits for the Charles M. Schulz Museum that traveled the USA for five years, and continues to make special exhibits for their changing in-house shows. Michael designed and built a majority of the interior exhibits for the Children’s Museum of Sonoma County with his friend James Yonts.

As a teenager at Casa Grande High School in Petaluma, Michael invented a game that eventually became the internationally known series of games called Perplexus. Over the years, he has designed more than a dozen Perplexus iterations, including a Death Star, two Perplexus/Rubik’s Fusions, and a Harry Potter Golden Snitch. His Perplexus Epic won Game of the Year in 2013, and his Golden Snitch won Art and Design Visuals of the Year in 2021.

superplexus.com

Other works by Michael McGinnis in the Geometry In Art Exhibition