Week 2 - The Intertwining of Mathematics and Art

Only when closely examining mathematics and art as one, can their intertwining similarities be recognized. As Farsi and Craft state in their article One in Two, Two in One: Mathematics and the Arts, “….it is clear that both disciplines share a wonderful creative aspect. While the external expressions and techniques of art and mathematics could not be more different, the fundamental creativity required to be practitioners is central to both disciplines”.

(Figure 1 The Golden Ratio can even been
 seen in the famous Mona Lisa)

Farsi and Craft believe that art and mathematics form a type of “harmony” when put together.  The Golden Ratio is a key example of something that has harmoniously combined both disciplines. Many artists have proportioned their works using the golden ratio because it is believed this proportion is aesthetically pleasing. As Professor Vesna points out in Lecture, one famous painting done according to the golden ratio was the Mona Lisa by Leonardo Da Vinci. In order to draw attention to the face, Leonardo used the intersection of the golden rectangles incorporated into his painting as a focal point. 

(Figure 2 Mandelbrot Fractal)

Some artists who may not appreciate mathematics may not even realize they are incorporating symmetry, geometry and measurements into their pieces. Although these simple mathematical concepts are universal in the art world, the truly great pieces tend to utilize more complex mathematical tools, such as the Golden Ratio mentioned above. For example, one type of art that utilizes multiple complex mathematical tools is Fractal art. As seen in the Fractals-Mandelbrot video, Fractal Artwork involves imputing mathematical formulas into the computer to produce beautiful pieces of digital art.

(Figure 3 How the stock market was
depicted as a spiral in the Fibonacci,
Fractals, and Financial Markets video)

Although the connection of math and art can be hard to see, I would have to agree with Farsi and Craft and say “like the yin/yang symbol, art and mathematics are really one in two, and two in one”. Mathematics has given art uncountable tools to create masterpieces, and art has helped mathematicians see math in a multitude of lights. For example, spirals have proved beneficial to Socioeconomics according to the Fibonacci, Fractals and Financial Markets video which states that the “idealized depiction of a stock markets progress can be seen as a spiral…”.

Researching the relationship between mathematics and art has shed light on how blinded I was prior to this class. Now, everywhere I look I see how much mathematics is entangled in our everyday lives. In architecture. In science. In nature. In art. Its  presence is almost overwhelming…

Works Cited

Craft, D., and C. Farsi. "One in Two, Two in One: Mathematics and the Arts." . University of Colorado. Web. 14 Oct 2013. <http://staff.washington.edu/rockne/math-art.pdf>.

Fibonacci, Fractals and Financial Markets - Socionomics.net. Socionomic Institute, 1997. Youtube. 13 Oct 2013. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=RE2Lu65XxTU>.

Figure 1. Da Vinci, Leonardo. Mona Lisa. 2002. Painting. Coastal Style. Web. 13 Oct 2013. <http://www.coastal-style.com/mona-lisa.html>.

Figure 2. Fractals, Fantastic. Mandelbrot Fractal. 2007. Graphic. Fantastic FractalsWeb. 13 Oct 2013. <http://www.fantastic-fractals.com/Mandelbrot-Fractals.html>.

Figure 3. Figure 1. Fibonacci, Fractals and Financial Markets - Socionomics.net. Socioeconomics. YouTube. Socioeconomics. Web. 13 October 2013. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=RE2Lu65XxTU>.

Fractals - Mandelbrot. Fractint Development Team, Youtube. 13 Oct 2013. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ivRQDbAduoM>.

Vesna, Victoria. “Math + Art.” Lecture 2. Web. 13 Oct. 2013.