''Relativity'' is a

lithograph Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the miscibility, immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by ...

print by the Dutch artist

M. C. Escher Maurits Cornelis Escher (; ; 17 June 1898 – 27 March 1972) was a Dutch graphic artist who made woodcuts, lithography, lithographs, and mezzotints, many of which were Mathematics and art, inspired by mathematics. Despite wide popular int ...

, first printed in December 1953. The first version of this work was a

woodcut Woodcut is a relief printing technique in printmaking. An artist carves an image into the surface of a block of wood—typically with gouges—leaving the printing parts level with the surface while removing the non-printing parts. Areas that ...

made earlier that same year. It depicts a world in which the normal laws of

gravity In physics, gravity (), also known as gravitation or a gravitational interaction, is a fundamental interaction, a mutual attraction between all massive particles. On Earth, gravity takes a slightly different meaning: the observed force b ...

do not apply. The architectural structure seems to be the centre of an idyllic community, with most of its inhabitants casually going about their ordinary business, such as dining. There are windows and doorways leading to park-like outdoor settings. All of the figures are dressed in identical attire and have featureless bulb-shaped heads. Identical characters such as these can be found in many other Escher works. In the world of ''Relativity'', there are three sources of gravity, each being

orthogonal In mathematics, orthogonality (mathematics), orthogonality is the generalization of the geometric notion of ''perpendicularity''. Although many authors use the two terms ''perpendicular'' and ''orthogonal'' interchangeably, the term ''perpendic ...

to the two others. Each inhabitant lives in one of the

gravity well A sphere of influence (SOI) in astrodynamics and astronomy is the oblate spheroid-shaped region where a particular celestial body exerts the main gravitational influence on an orbiting object. This is usually used to describe the areas in the ...

s, where normal physical laws apply. There are sixteen characters, spread between each gravity source, six in one and five in each of the other two. The apparent confusion of the lithograph print comes from the fact that the three gravity sources are depicted in the same space. The structure has seven stairways, and each stairway can be used by people who belong to two different gravity sources. This creates interesting phenomena, such as in the top stairway, where two inhabitants use the same stairway in the same direction and on the same side, but each using a different face of each step; thus, one descends the stairway as the other climbs it, even while moving in the same direction nearly side by side. In the other stairways, inhabitants are depicted as climbing the stairways upside-down, but based on their own gravity source, they are climbing normally. Each of the three parks belongs to one of the gravity wells. All but one of the doors seem to lead to basements below the parks. Though metaphysically possible, such basements are unusual and add to the surreal effect of the picture.

In popular culture

''Relativity'' is one of Escher's most popular works, and has been used in a variety of ways.

References

{{Mathematical art, state=expanded 1953 prints Mathematical artworks Works by M. C. Escher