Zandfoort aan Zee
Abstract
This self-directed study examines the underlying geometric structure of naturally occurring surfaces, and demonstrates several computational methods for modeling them. The project began as an exercise in understanding how geometric data is represented from mathematical expressions, and how those expressions can be modeled, manipulated, and visualized. No novel algorithms are proposed. Rather, the works intent is to document an incremental learning process. The resulting workflow offers a transparent reference for others intent on translating mathematical concepts into physical outcomes.
Part 1
This summer, I had the privilege of visiting Haarlem, in the Netherlands, for the Amsterdam 2025 edition of CDFAM Computational Design Symposium. On my day off, I traveled to Zandvoort aan Zee for a beach day, and something captured my attention: intricate, loosely repeating patterns carved into the sand bar by wave currents. As a junior designer I could not help but marvel at the aesthetic harmony of what I saw. As a novice programmer, I had to ponder what logic governed it. I noticed that the patterns could be grouped together with similar traits, and that the wave currents produced several discernable phenomena. Pictured below, is a non-exhaustive set of the phenomena I was able to photograph:
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