Have you ever wanted to create a maze ? What about a maze that has enough detail and complexity that it could be considered art ? I love creating maze art and I want to share with you my process. Let’s start with a definition of what exactly I mean by maze art. OK maybe a few possible definitions.
Maze Art - A solvable maze of a subject that is good enough that someone would consider hanging it on the wall as an art piece.
Maze Art - A piece of art that just so happens to contain a solvable maze.
Maze Art - A solvable maze made to look like something that is not a maze, like an object/thing/person/place/landscape.
Maze Art - A solvable maze made to look aesthetically pleasing or interesting and not just to be solved.
All of my definitions includes solvability. I do not include pictures that have design elements of mazes and labyrinths in them but are not solvable. Also, I think when you look at maze art you see the picture first and the maze is secondary (when looking at it, certainly this is not the case when designing it !!!).
One place you will not find help on defining this is in the Image Search section of your favorite browser. The majority of what you will get back a variety of renderings of boring maze clipart. Well unless you are looking for maze clip art - then you have a very efficient search !!! Every time I do the search I am disappointed with very few exceptions. For awhile I thought AI hasn’t been trained on what is considered art yet (Maybe that’s a good thing?), but we all have seen the new AI art tools by now, so that is not it. Here is what I found from 3 different searches:
Bing: About half of the results are of basic clip art. Nothing I would consider putting on my wall except result #2 and the skateboarder in row #2. You also get some cool 3D renderings of mazes but none of them are solvable since they include no start/goal and are not fully viewable.
Google: Much better results. A few clip art images are mixed in. This also includes a mix of art pieces that include maze and labyrinth elements but they are not solvable. But this is closer to what I would hope for from the search at least.
DuckDuckGo: More majority clip art of basic mazes. Generally a very similar look to the Bing results in a different order.
Here are some examples that I have made that I believe would be considered maze art. They are examples that I think should show up in the searches above. If you are interested in solving them, downloads of all of these mazes can be found on this site.
Building Maze art:
The Alamo Mission Maze art
Lotus Temple Maze art
And here are 2 Sign maze art examples:
Spillway Lanes Sign Maze Art
Chicago Theatre Sign Maze Art
You can also find on the site examples of landscape maze art, scene maze art, animal maze art and monument maze art. Take some time to look around !
So that is what I think maze art is, with many other examples and styles possible.
Today is first in a series of posts that will take you through how to make maze art step by step. Now this could mean converting a picture, or drawing something you think of free hand. One thing I can’t help you with is your drawing skills. If I say “Draw me a picture of Abraham Lincoln”, some of you have the skills to do that and some of you don’t, and even those with the skills will have different levels of detail and realism to their finished product. I can’t teach the skill of drawing. Sorry. But, regardless of your skill level, I hope you enjoy the process and consider trying to make some art yourself. Let’s get started.
How to create maze art in 6 “easy” steps:
Step 1 - Choose your maze subject
Seems easy right ? If you are going to make a maze you need to pick what the subject of the maze is first. But I don’t suggest you grab the first photograph you have. Here are some things to consider when making a maze:
Objects with right angles are a natural thing to make into mazes. Think about architecture. Buildings are a natural subject to make a maze of. They are made of geometric shapes and are filled with right angles whether it is a house or a skyscraper.
Consumer goods make good subject matter also, but chances are you won’t want to invest time in making them. A Bike, lamp, radio, television, desk, and chair could all become maze art. I’m not sure anyone gets very excited about them, but they are possible.
Faces are possible, but very difficult for most people (If they are easy for you congratulations !). Any maze art includes a drawing of the subject matter first and foremost, so doing a maze of a friend means you have the ability to draw your friend and it to be recognizable as them. This can be easier if your friend has an extremely recognizable look, say someone like Abraham Lincoln - a large beard and hat with a gaunt face gets you relatively close.
Ideally, the picture you choose should not be too busy. Too much detail can be difficult to make into a maze. You do have the option to ignore the detail. But think about a picture of 4 faces vs a picture of 1 face. 4 faces in a picture with all of their individual detail will be very difficult. 1 face is enough.
Step 2 - Take a photograph of the subject (OPTIONAL)
If you don’t already have a photograph of your subject matter, take one. Remember from step 1 to make the picture as minimalistic as you can.
Taking the photograph also means prepping it as a “before” photo if you are doing a before and after version of the subject. Crop as needed, adjust the brightness, etc.
If you are doing something from memory or doing fictional subject matter, no photo is needed obviously.
And finally, you can find a photograph to base your maze off of if taking a photo yourself is not feasible. For presentation purposes, having the rights to a photograph will help you to display it in the future.
Step 3 - Draw the Main outline of the subject
Determine how you will deal with an object’s perspective. By this I mean if you are making a maze of an object that is square or rectangle in real life it is likely the photograph will not be perfectly square/rectangular. Do you want to represent a building as it is (perfect angles), or how you see it (your perspective - the building is slightly smaller at the top). Maze lines are easier to make without perspective, but either can be done.
Use the photograph to draw the major outline of the maze. If you are doing this digitally (As I assume you are) you do not need to leave openings for the paths/entrance/exit.
The outer walls of the maze should be done with a thicker maze line to give the picture definition. Inner walls that define the picture should be a smaller thickness (with some exceptions based on the subject).
Step 4 - Begin the design of the maze
If you aren’t sure what maze construction you are going to do, check out this section for some ideas. I will say with maze art you will find it looks best when done with free drawn or standard pathways. I also like to use the natural features of the subject as the maze walls where possible - see the Alamo Mission maze above - the bricks naturally became the walls; and the Museum of the North Maze above where the metal panels naturally created a grid maze format.
Choose the start and goal, ideally on opposite sides of the picture.
Choose the wall design you will use to make the maze walls. Regardless of the design you choose the walls will need to be a smaller width than the previous outer and inner walls. There are many types of pathways you can use from a standard pathway to hand drawn, vertical, horizontal and many more.
Consider how difficult you want to make the maze for the solver. For most mazes you don’t want to discourage the solver by making it too difficult.
Step 5 - Draw the maze
It took 5 steps to get here, now do the actual work. Funny this is the shortest step to write but typically the longest to complete !
Step 6 - Make any aesthetic changes to complete the maze - Color, Size, Border, Title
Black and white is the standard coloring of most mazes, but some mazes will look even better if they are in color. Consider coloring your maze to enhance the way it looks.
Some mazes work best in larger/smaller scales. Consider changing the size of your maze to fit the desired presentation you are looking for. This is the advantage of digital mazes vs hand drawn mazes.
Consider adding a title and border depending on how your maze will be presented.
Congratulations on creating a piece of maze art !!
Making Maze Art - Case Study #1 - The Largest FREE Stamp in the World
Now I’m going to take you behind the scenes in my making of some Maze Art. Here is a real life example from a maze I made for the site, of the sculpture that is The Largest FREE Stamp in the World. Using the steps I outlined before here is how the Maze got made !!
Step 1 - Choose your maze subject
While previously living in Cleveland, Ohio I found my inspiration in the park. If you walk to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (and if you are ever in Cleveland that is probably why you are here) you will pass the FREE Stamp on your walk. The stamp is located in Willard Park on the northwest corner of East 9th Street and Lakeside Avenue, having been installed there in 1991. It has an interesting history that involves Standard Oil (Sohio) and their purchase by BP.
Step 2 - Take a photograph of the subject
I took many photos of the stamp from different angles so I would be able to narrow them down later.
Eventually, I chose photograph #3, which I cropped and adjusted the color on to account for the overcast day. Here is the final version I used to make the Maze art:
Step 3 - Draw the Main outline of the subject
Using the photograph in the background I made the maze outline. Here are some points in time during that outline process. You will notice that because this is a digital drawing so I can fix the FREE overlap you see later using layers.
Step 4 - Begin the design of the maze
I did not want much difficultly in this maze so I intended to make the dead ends obvious more quickly and have the maze spacing be wide. It seemed natural to make the internal maze lines somewhat match the shape of the sculpture. A typical left to right maze start to finish seems to fit the sculpture. So a relatively simple maze design. I used essentially a free drawn maze construction.
Step 5 - Draw the maze
Below are a few of the points in time in making the stamp maze. Notice that I sometimes rotate the maze in order to make the lines easier to draw at the correct angle. Also notice that the goal of the maze changes late in the process (panel 4) as I have a better idea of how I want the maze solver to maneuver through the maze as I make the internal maze lines. Also in Panel 4 I add a layer to raise the FREE part of the maze above the remaining drawing (most easily seen at the bottom of the last E which no longer has a line thru it).
Step 6 - Complete the Maze
Here is the final black and white version of the FREE Stamp maze.
I like how it came out, but I think this particular subject matter deserves to be tried in color, to see if it will enhance the maze.
Color the Maze (Optional)
Initially I did a basic 2 color approach. Sometimes less is more. Here is the simple red and white version of the maze:
Not bad. But I thought I could do better with a more detailed coloring similar to what you would see in Willard Park. Here is my preferred and final version in full color:
I do need to mention that the inclusion of the black pathways changes the way you see the colors you select. If you were to try and color match the photo using the tools in your drawing program the result would look off (usually darker). Better to select the colors and adjust them on your own. Also, in order to see the pathways well, it is important to not make the shadowy underbelly of the stamp too dark !!
All three maze versions work, which do you prefer ? Would you have added the ground underneath, or some background ?
If you like this Making Maze Art Case Study, I will be doing more in the future !
Some other interesting post you may like: