Books on Patterns in Nature and Art

The Elements of Design: Rediscovering Colours, Textures, Forms and Shapes: Loan Oei and Cecile de Kegel, Thames and Hudson, 2002
ISBN: 0500283397
A beautiful book full of wonderful natural patterns, made by people with a love of the beauty of Nature similar to mine. The images rightly include patterns woven and crafted by humans working with Nature.
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Natural Art Forms: Karl Blossfeldt, Dover, 1998
ISBN: 0486400034
A professional photographer's view of the chiaroscuro, harmony, pattern, and surprise in plants. Copying is permitted!
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Art Forms in Nature: Ernst Haeckel, Dover, 1974 (but still popular)
ISBN: 0486229874
An extraordinary tour of symmetry, colour and pattern through the eyes of the famous pioneering zoologist Ernst Haeckel.
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Art Forms in Nature: Ernst Haeckel (Prestel Minis S.) and Melanie Klier
ISBN: 3791330853
A miniature but delightful tour in full colour through the artwork of Nature, based on the work of the famous pioneering zoologist Ernst Haeckel (see the entry above!).
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African Designs from Traditional Sources: Geoffrey Williams
ISBN: 0486227529
The glorious tribal patterns and paintings of Africa in this handsome Dover book.
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Visual Explanations, by Edward R. Tufte, Graphics Press, 1997. ISBN 0961392126
A brilliant, fascinating, beautiful tour de force through art, science, history, politics, typography, magic, animal behaviour, cartography, and more.
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Natural Surfaces, Visual Research for Artists, Architects and Designers: Judy A. Juracek, Thames and Hudson, 2002 (with CD-ROM)
ISBN: 0500510733
A fascinating book full of textures and patterns from Nature, with the practical convenience of a CD-ROM as well.
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World Textiles, by John Gillow and Bryan Sentance, Thames & Hudson, 1999. ISBN 0500019509
A visual guide to traditional techniques. This is an excellent introductory book by the world expert on textiles, John Gillow (see below for some of his wonderful books on textile designs from particular regions). However as a source of different types of woven pattern it is outstanding. Wonderful historic photos, e.g. of the last king of the Ashanti wearing a stripweave. 778 illustrations, 551 in colour.
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Embroidered Textiles, by Sheila Paine, Thames & Hudson, 1990 and 1995. ISBN 0500278237
Traditional patterns from five continents with a worldwide guide to identification. Sheila Paine is a widely-travelled expert in embroidered textiles, with (perhaps) a special interest in the traditions of the tribes of central and south Asia. She is an equally accomplished writer, and the photographs are of course stunningly beautiful. 279 illustrations, 171 in colour.
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Traditional Indonesian Textiles, by John Gillow, photographs by Barry Dawson, Thames & Hudson, 1992 and 1995. ISBN 0500278202
Glorious batiks and ikats, ulos and sarongs, tapis and selimut. 237 illustrations, 188 in colour.
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Traditional Indian Textiles, by John Gillow and Nicholas Barnard, Thames & Hudson, 1991 and 1993. ISBN 0500277095
A feast of reds and yellows with patterns from ikats to tie-dye, wood-block to pen-work. 195 illustrations, 169 in colour, and 4 maps.
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Creating Textures in Watercolor, by Cathy Johnson. North Light Books, 1992. ISBN 0891344179
A guide to painting 83 textures from grass to glass to tree bark to fur.
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Inversions, by Scott Kim. Byte Books, 1981, distributed by MIT Press. ISBN 0070345465
Calligraphic Cartwheels. A bizarre and extraordinary beautiful tour of ingenious word-patterns.
Out of print, alas, but Amazon can often get you a second-hand copy.
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Patterns in Nature, by Peter S. Stevens. Penguin Books, 1974. ISBN 014055114X
An inspiring tour de force balancing art and science.
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On Growth and Form

by D'Arcy Wentworth Thompson, 1917, reprinted 1992
A pioneering classic by a great man. 1116 pages! ISBN 0486671356
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The Geometry of Art and Life, Matila Costiescu Ghyka, 191 Pages, 1946, 2nd Edition Dover 1978. ISBN: 0486235424
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The Curves of Life:
Being an Account of Spiral Formations and Their Application to Growth in Nature, to Science, and to Art:
With Special Reference by Sir Theodore Andrea Cook, 512 pages Dover 1979. ISBN 048623701X
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The Self-made Tapestry: Pattern formation in nature, by Philip Ball, published by Oxford University Press. 2001 ISBN: 0198502435

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The Divine Proportion: A Study in Mathematical Beauty, H. E. Huntley, 186 pages, Dover 1970, ISBN 0486222543
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Kilim catalogue no:1, by Güran Erbek, Selçuk A.S., Turkey, 1988
A beautiful set of photos of kilim carpets with drawings of the symbols used.
Selçuk A.S.. Köroglu Caddesi 39 Gaziosmanpasa, Ankara, Turkey

Nature's Chaos, by Eliot Porter and James Gleick, Viking, 1990. ISBN 0670835323
Porter's glorious color photographs combine with Gleick's knowledgeable writing.
Gleick is the science journalist who has written popular but detailed accounts of the life-work of scientists Richard Feynman and Isaac Newton, and notably of the new science of Chaos, which is why he was asked to write the text for this wonderful book of chaotic images.
Out of print, alas, but Amazon can often get you a second-hand copy.
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Tenun Ikat / Indonesian Ikats, by Suwati Kartiwa, Penerbit Djambatan, 3rd Edition 1993. ISBN 9794280240
Precise explanation and description of ikat cloths from all over Indonesia, with black and white drawings and color photographs. Parallel text in English and Indonesian.
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Carpets, by Jon Thompson, Barrie & Jenkins, 1988. ISBN 0712625011
From the tents, cottages, and workshops of Asia, An Introduction
Out of print, alas, but Amazon can often get you a second-hand copy.
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The Idea of Nature, by R.G.Collingwood, 1945. (Oxford Paperbacks 1965)
The classical tour of what people have meant over the ages by 'Nature'.
Long out of print but can often be found second-hand via Amazon.co.uk.
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