Developments

As such, the term Development here is used in the sense of Escher's own example, Development I, where lizards 'develop' from the outside to in of a chequerboard. Of course, one is not restricted to either this order (outside to in) or format (chequerboard), as other configurations are possible. Having discussed elsewhere the theory underlying Escher’s own developments: http://www.tess-elation.co.uk/how-escher-did-an-introduction/how-escher-did-development, this section shows an arbitrary selection of linear and chequerboard examples and formats, shown in their finished state. Hand-in-hand with the process of development is the usage of appropriate colouring, which should be related to the outline in terms of intensity. The selection here was carefully chosen to enhance the intensity of the respective colouration, namely with blue and white for the linear strips (Nos. 1–2). Furthermore, an additional linear strip is shown (No. 3), whereby the complementary colours of blue and orange are desaturated back to a mid grey. The chequerboards (Nos. 4–5) used complementary colours in juxtaposition (in this instance blue and orange).

Linear Strip
The linear strip examples show an 8 x 6 format, with developments from extremities to centre (No. 1) and from centre to extremities (No. 2). As such, the colouration 'matches' the angularity of the lines, with a mid-blue chequerboard starting point followed by more intense colours as the composition develops.

A 'straightforward' development, with from left to right, a weak blue and orange chequered colouring, gaining in intensity towards the centre, and then the process reverses to the right, echoing the increasing degree of angularity of outline,  and reverse.

A 'straightforward' development, with from left to right, a middle grey, with blue and orange gaining in intensity towards the centre, and then the process reverses to the right, echoing the increasing degree of angularity of outline,  and reverse.

Chequerboards
The chequerboard examples show an 8 x 8 format, with developments from extremities to centre (No. 2a) and from centre to extremities (No. 2b). As such, the complementary colouration of blue and orange matches the angularity of the lines, with a pale blue and orange chequerboard starting point followed by more intense colours as the composition develops.

Here, the development gains in angularity of outline and colour intensity from outer to inner. Those familiar with Escher's Development I will see similarities here, in that this is fundamentally the same type of composition, albeit of different motifs, format and in colouration (with Escher's print of lizard motifs, 10 x 10, and of black, grey and white) whilst retaining the same principles.

Here, the development gains in angularity of outline and colour intensity from inner to outer. Essentially, this is the inverse of No. 2a.

Page History. 20 October 2025. Upgrade from Classic Sites. Rewrote the commentary text for the linear examples, which was poor.  Aside from that, only minor tidying-up was required. The conversion had left the captions off-centre, to which I now attach them to the pictures. Checked text in Grammarly pending a later, more extensive review.

Created 22 May 2014, of a revision of 2009 material, placed as a single page for reasons of succinctness.