Chen-Lee System
Chen-Lee System art by Riccardo Zerbinati explores a trajectory shaped by coupling between three coordinates. The reference equations combine linear terms with products of the state variables. A cross-section swept along the sampled path gives that motion a surface, which the artist composes and lights in 3ds Max.
The mathematical reference
The Chen–Lee system is the mathematical reference behind this study. Its title situates the work within research on nonlinear dynamical systems. The artwork is not a direct rendering of a trajectory and should not be read as a scientific diagram; it is a visual interpretation made for the Strange Attractors collection.
Chen-Lee System equations
Three pairwise products distribute feedback between the coordinates. This is the normalized reference form; the constants are left symbolic.
Here, t is time and the variables are coordinates in the system’s state space. Letters such as a, b and c denote fixed coefficients. These are reference equations for the named model or family, not a recovered record of the parameters, initial conditions or integration settings used in this particular image. Chaotic behaviour depends on those choices.
Formula reference: View the documented system and source.
From a trajectory to Chen-Lee System art
Riccardo develops the rail in Grasshopper for Rhinoceros using Chimpanzee. The system evolves over time, producing successive three-dimensional points. Connecting those samples creates a path. A cross-section is then swept along that rail, giving the line thickness and a surface. This is how a time-dependent mathematical trajectory becomes visible as sculptural geometry.
The sweep adds a visual layer to the mathematics: its width and orientation affect how the form catches light. Riccardo then uses 3ds Max to develop the material, camera and illumination. The finished work is a digital render of this geometry, rather than a photograph of a fabricated object. No generative AI is used to create the artwork.
To read the image, follow a single edge as it moves through light and shadow. Notice where the projected path overlaps, opens or disappears behind another surface. The rail comes from a rule evolving through time; the artist’s composition lets us experience that motion as a still image. The aim is to reveal the hidden beauty of chaos theory.
A study in form
The sculpture invites the eye to move between its overall silhouette and the smaller turns in its form. A metallic finish gives the digital object a material suggestion, while the quiet setting keeps the composition clear. This page pairs a concise mathematical context with an open visual reading so the two can sit together without being confused.
Modelled in Rhinoceros and rendered in 3ds Max by Riccardo Zerbinati, this work is one of 40 vertical artworks in the Strange Attractors collection, created through a human-led process without generative AI.
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