Fractals are patterns that repeat themselves at different scales. They are found abundantly in nature, from trees, river systems, lightning bolts, clouds, seashells and more. An obvious example is snow. If you look at a snowflake you see that each section is a copy of the larger section. Similarly, look closely at a head of broccoli (one of my favourite vegetables) and you see that it’s composed of smaller portions which are structured in exactly the same way, which are made up of still smaller portions, and so on. Fractals are theoretically infinite – they could go on repeating at smaller and smaller scales.
Broccoli are constructed in fractals!
It’s always fascinating to see how certain patterns occur in nature. And some experts even suggest that the Universe itself is a fractal! Given the prevalence of fractals in the cosmos, it should come as little surprise that humans also deploy fractals. Most interesting for me is that Black cultures seem to be particularly focused on fractals. Fractals appear in African architecture, textiles, hair designs, and art, often reflecting deep social, spiritual and philosophical meanings.
Fractals in African Architecture
In many parts of Africa, villages are traditionally designed with fractal geometry. A small home might mirror the shape of the larger village. A circular layout of huts is repeated in larger compounds, forming networks that echo each other at different scales. Examples of this can be found in Malian, Ghanaian and Nigerian architecture, among others.
Fractals can be found in African textiles like kente cloth, kuba patterns, and beadwork, where repeating shapes form complex, layered designs. Our hair designs often use spirals, rows, and branching styles that repeat from crown to nape.
I think that this form of design probably reflects key philosophical principles that underpin African cultures. For example, in contrast with the atomism of the prevailing European mode of thought, Africa philosophy sees humans as intrinsically interconnected and dependent on each other. Another recurring idea is that time is cyclical rather than linear. My speculation is that the repeating patterns in African material cultures are concrete expressions of these sorts of ideas. And there’s a fascinating connection between African cosmologies and fractals.
Science and Spirituality
The Center for Culturally Situated Design has an excellent microsite on African fractals. One section gives this intriguing discussion of how modern science and African spiritual systems:
You might think that the more random something is, the more complex it is. But computer scientists measure complexity by how hard it is to model something. Completely ordered things like crystals have low complexity, but so do completely disordered things, because you can easily model them with randomness. Fractals however are half-way between completely ordered and completely disordered. Self-organizing systems like living things and turbulence give rise to the most complex patterns and behaviors. Fractals are a “signature” of self-organization.
Just as computer scientists view fractals as the most complex because they require the greatest computing power, African religions generally use fractal imagery for the gods with the most spiritual power. Gods representing orderly, cyclic patterns (such as Nummo in Mali and Dan in Benin, shown above) tend to have low power. Trickster gods representing disorder, more common in narrative form, tend to have low power. Fractals and related scaling shapes tend to be associated with the power of life (Nyame in Ghana, Mawu in Benin), and hence higher power.
Ordinary things have Extraordinary significance
This whole fractals in African culture thing is yet another example of why we should study and value our everyday cultural expressions. It’s easy to dismiss things like hair designs and music forms as being “just culture.” But it’s my strong belief that if and when we take care to study these things, we will find that they can teach us lots about our ancient philosophical and spiritual traditions, and sometimes about the universe itself.
Learn More about Fractals
Ron Eglash: The fractals at the heart of African designs
How fractals can help you understand the universe | BBC Ideas
