Abstract This article explores the relationship between architecture and the kaleidoscope, tracing its history from its origins to its modern-day applications using advanced digital tools. The kaleidoscope, an object that functions through the application of optical principles, is primarily known today for its recreational use. Originally designed to aid in the creation of decorative patterns for architectural applications, it soon became a paradigm of an era and its technological and formal characteristics. Used as a conceptual and formal reference in architecture since the nineteenth century, the kaleidoscope has continued to inspire artistic and architectural experiences to the present day, where new parametric digital design technologies can be used, as will be demonstrated in this article, to shape new built objects and spatial experiences.
Cicalò et al. (2026) studied this question.