The Patchwork Amoeba puzzle is one of our most challenging puzzles. Instead of being lasercut from a continuous piece of wood, each piece is cut independently resulting in a patchwork effect. Since each piece is cut from a different area with a different rotation, the wood grain is discontinuous across the puzzle and cannot be used as a hint to help assembly. This puzzle also features our extra-hard amoeba shaped pieces which zipper together with tiny teeth. One side of the puzzle is blank and the other is engraved with a pattern of striped lines which radiate from the center of each piece.

size: 7" circle
material: 1/4" plywood
number of pieces: approximately 70

About our puzzles
Jigsaw puzzles for the 21st century! Our goal was to marry the artistry of traditional, hand-crafted jigsaw puzzles with the possibilities of new technologies. Custom software simulates crystal growth to create an organic interlocking pattern. Our laser cutter translates this into a unique set of plywood pieces. These blank, image-less puzzles are extra challenging to assemble and also highlight the natural beauty of the wood.

To create the organic shape of the pieces, we designed a system based the simulation of dendritic solidification, a crystal growth process similar to the formation of snowflakes that occurs in supercooled solutions of certain metallic alloys. By varying the parameter space, it can produce a variety of cut styles. You can read about how our simulation works here.

For more information visit the Generative Jigsaws Project Page