In 1894, German-American psychologist Hugo Munsterberg described a peculiar observation, that when blocks of light and dark high contrast are staggered in rows, parallel lines drawn between the rows appear to be crooked.

Here at Boxes and Booze, we love books. Someday, when I need to give up drinking entirely (is that possible?), I might change the theme here to Boxes and Books, in fact. It has a nice ring to it, don’t you think?

Kagen Sound is trying something new. The American master of finely crafted secret opening boxes is incorporating electronics now, but at least in this case, the batteries are included.

Few puzzle makers in the world have less need to prove themselves than Kagen Sound, who is widely considered to be one of the great artisans of the artform. Yet here he is, flexing for us.

The fox has many tricks. The hedgehog has but one. But that is the best of all. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Kagen Sound has always had a love of mazes since his childhood, when he would hand draw them for fun and friends to attempt.

Kagen Sound has had us going around in circles over the past five years or more with his epic set of patterned boxes.

Master craftsman Akio Kamei, the founder of the Karakuri Creation Group of Japanese artisans, is famous for his ability to create pieces that tell a story. His work is prized for its novelty, beauty and ingenuity. It’s no wonder that he has been a source of inspiration and admiration for American artist Kagen Sound, whose own work is highly prized for similar reasons.

Nature is full of beautiful sounds, don’t you agree? Especially in Colorado, where artist Kagen Sound and his family reside.

It’s always a treat to discuss one of Kagen Sound’s fine boxes. He has made a reputation for himself as one of the world’s foremost puzzle box makers. The description doesn’t quite do justice to his work.

Considered by many to be a master of the art, Kagen Sound (nee Schaeffer) crafts his artisanal puzzle boxes in Colorado using his mathematical mindset and wood working techniques usually reserved for fine musical instruments.

Sometimes a puzzle will keep you going around in circles. In this case, it’s quite literal as well. Kagen Sound is a well known wood worker, mathematician, artist and conservationist who resides in Denver, Colorado.

A beautiful hybrid puzzle, created by Kagen Sound (a man whose very name is a lovely hybrid), is the Cocobolo Maze Burr.  This stunning piece of puzzle art is made with cocobolo, ebony and holly woods, and is an evolved version of his award winning "Maze Burr" puzzle, which was the “puzzle of the year”, winning both the people’s choice and jury grand prize awards in the 2006 NobYoshigahara Puzzle Design Competition.