Fractal-like / Kaleidoscopic

Artworks with an incredible level of compositional complexity, often achieved through the use of intricate, all-over patterns that disorient or cause the eye to flit about, as with the infinitely repeating patterns of fractals or kaleidoscopes. This effect is sometimes referred to as “horror vacui”, Latin for “fear of empty space”, as such detailing fills an entire surface or artwork, leaving no room for negative space or unadorned passages. Ebullient patterning and dizzying complexity is a hallmark of Islamic art and architecture, of which the Muqarnas Dome at Alhambra in Grenada, Spain, is an iconic example.