Domino Artist Lily Hevesh Creates Mind-Blowing Domino Installations

Domino (UK, Italian: domino, ) is a game in which players place a number of pieces (also known as men, bones, cards, or pieces) on a rectangular board, face to face. The object is to score points by matching pairs of pips. In the most common form of Western play, the player who plays the domino with the highest total pip count is the winner.

Dominoes are made from a variety of materials, including wood, bone, silver lip ocean pearl oyster shell (MOP), ivory, and ebony. Most European-style sets feature the top half of each domino in MOP or a dark hardwood, with contrasting black or white pips. The lower half is usually made from a lighter material, such as plastic.

When stacked on end, the dominoes can create very complex patterns. They can also be played as a simple game by flicking the first domino in a line and waiting for it to fall, then watching the rest tumble.

Lily Hevesh started playing with dominoes when she was about nine years old. Her grandparents had a 28-pack, and she loved setting the dominoes up in a line and letting them fall.

She started posting videos of her domino projects on YouTube, and she quickly gained a following. Now she creates incredible displays for movies, TV shows, and events.

Among her most elaborate installations, Hevesh has set a Guinness World Record for the most dominoes toppled in a circular arrangement: 76,017.

A great domino setup, she says, isn’t just a clever design; it’s also built on the laws of physics. In particular, gravity is key to her feats of engineering.

The force of gravity pulls the knocked-over domino toward Earth, sending it crashing into the next domino and starting a chain reaction. It’s this principle that allows Hevesh to create her mind-boggling designs and enthrall audiences at concerts and other events.

She uses this method to create mind-blowing installations, based on the theme or purpose she’s thinking of. She follows a version of the engineering-design process, deciding on a theme or idea and then brainstorming images or words she may want to use in her design.

When she’s satisfied with her concept, Hevesh begins building. She starts with a single domino in the center and stacks other dominoes around it, ensuring they’re spaced correctly so that they fall according to the rules of physics.

It takes a lot of practice to master the art of domino-setting, but once she has mastered it, Hevesh loves it. The thrill of seeing a long line of dominoes toppling is what keeps her going.

One of the most important skills to hone is the ability to focus on the big picture. It’s easy to get caught up in the details of a project, especially when it involves large teams and multiple departments. By focusing on the larger goal, Hevesh helps her team members stay focused on the task at hand and avoid distractions.

This mental model can be applied to any initiative, including a new business idea. Instead of jumping in head-first, try putting a single idea in front of the whole team and asking for feedback. Then, make a list of highly-specific and bite-sized action items for the team to tackle. This way, even the most ambitious ideas can be prioritized and kept in perspective.