Endless Journey

Art of Play presents a new limited edition issue of the bestselling myriorama by Tom Gauld, inspired by the works of Laurence Sterne. Twelve picture cards which can be arranged to form 479,001,600 different landscapes.

Myriorama, or ‘Many Thousand Views’ consist of numerous cards depicting fragments or segments of landscapes that can be arranged in a multitude of different combinations. This ‘entertainment’ for young ladies and gentlemen originated in France. The first English version, published in 1824, was a set of 16 cards that depicted Gothic ruins, castles, cottages, a lighthouse, a man fishing, and a gypsy encampment. These landmarks had a backdrop of mountains with islands and a lake to add extra texture and depth.

Whenever the cards were taken out and arranged upon a table, they produced a landscape of harmony which was variable, compatible, and satisfying to the user without being geographically identifiable. This first myriorama seems to have been an instant success, and many varieties were created to satisfy the demands of the public.

The newly commissioned contemporary myriorama by Tom Gauld features numerous references to Laurence Sterne’s writings and includes incidents and characters that may be familiar to the reader. He has ordered his drawings to allow an almost limitless variety of Sternean encounters to take place.