Mathemalchemy
Website | https://mathemalchemy.org/ |
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Mathemalchemy is a traveling art installation dedicated to a celebration of the intersection of art and mathematics. It is a collaborative work led by
Description
The art installation occupies a footprint approximately 20 by 10.5 feet (6.1 by 3.2 m), which extends up to 9.5 feet (2.9 m) in height (in addition, small custom-fabricated tables are arranged around the periphery to protect the more fragile elements). A map shows the 14 or so different zones or regions within the exhibit, which is filled with hundreds of detailed mathematical artifacts, some smaller than 0.5 inches (13 mm); the entire exhibit comprises more than 1,000 parts which must be packed for shipment. Versions of some of the complex mathematical objects can be purchased through an associated "Mathemalchemy Boutique" website.[8]
The art installation contains puns (such as "Pi" in a bakery) and Easter eggs, such as a miniature model of the Antikythera mechanism hidden on the bottom of "Knotilus Bay". Mathematically sophisticated visitors may enjoy puzzling out and decoding the many mathematical allusions symbolized in the exhibit, while viewers of all levels are invited to enjoy the self-guided tours, detailed explanations, and videos available on the accompanying official website [1].[9]
A downloadable comic book was created to explore some of the themes of the exhibition, using an independent narrative set in the world of Mathemalchemy.[10]
Themes
The installation features or illustrates mathematical concepts at many different levels.[2] All of the participants regard "recreational mathematics"—especially when it has a strong visual component—as having an important role in education and in culture in general. Jessica Sklar maintains that "mathematics is, at heart, a human endeavor" and feels compelled to make it accessible to those who don't regard themselves as "math people".[2] Bronna Butler talks about the heritage of JH Conway, whose lectures were "almost magical in quality" because they used what looked like curios and tricks but in the end arrived at answers to "fundamental questions of mathematics".[3]
The creators had the goal of illustrating as much of mathematics as possible. Thus the various exhibits touch on
Twenty of the "mathemalchemists" are women, and the facility especially celebrates the contributions of women in mathematics, from amateur
Gallery
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Chipmunks learn about prime and composite numbers through a game involving acorns and Babylonian numeral tiles
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Mathematically-inspired flora and fauna fill the garden and reef as two squirrels discuss prime number algorithms in front of their Sieve of Eratosthenes
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A convergent series of mari (unembroidered) and temari (embroidered) balls rises above the installation
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Koch snowflakes descend through the Cavalcade of mathematical pages onto Integral Hill in the exhibit
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Great Doodle Page celebrates jottings by seven notable women in mathematics
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What does math taste like? Cat and mouse prepare treats in the math-infused Mandelbrot Bakery
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Cryptography Quilt represents 27 ways to encode messages
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Tess the Tortoise ambles down Zeno's Path toward Integral Hill
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Detail from Cavalcade of mathematical pages
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The silhouette of a teenager surfs above the Cavalcade and Ball Arches
History
Daubechies and Ehrmann presented the project in a special session at the 2020
Originally, the intent was to collectively design and fabricate in a series of workshops to be held at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, starting in March 2020.[7] The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted these plans.[14] Working instead over Zoom, under the guidance of Dominique Ehrmann and various "team leaders" for different parts of the installation, the 16-by-12-by-10-foot (4.9 by 3.7 by 3.0 m) installation was collectively designed and discussed.
In July 2021 the team could finally get together at Duke for the first in-person meeting, where the components that had been fabricated in various locations in the US and Canada were assembled for the first time, leading to the first complete full-scale construction.
The finished installation was originally displayed at Duke before moving to the
The exhibit is planned to ultimately reside in the Duke mathematics building, on permanent display.[14]
See also
- Ray and Charles Eames
- Mathematics and art
References
- ^ a b c d Mathemalchemy Project Comes to Duke Rhodes Information Initiative at Duke
- ^ a b c d e Professor Jessica Sklar Collaborates on a New Artwork Illuminating the Beauty of Math Pacific Lutheran University
- ^ a b c Math, Art, Abstraction: A Conversation with Bronna Butler by Jessica K. Sklar, Mathematical Association of America, VOL 28, Issue 3, Feb 2021
- ^ a b Cultural Programs of the National Academy of Sciences
- ^ a b "Mercer professor part of team creating large-scale mathematical art piece at Duke" By Andrea Honaker, Mercer University, July 8, 2021
- ^ The Godmother of the Digital Image by Siobhan Roberts, New York Times, September 14, 2021
- ^ a b Mathemalchemy: a mathematical and artistic adventure Oxford Mathematical Institute
- ^ "Home | Mathemalchemy Boutique". Mathemalchemy Boutique. Retrieved 2023-03-03.
- ^ a b c d Yarin, Sophie (February 16, 2023). "Mathemalchemy: Art and Math Converge in New Show at 808 Gallery". BU Today. Boston University. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
- ^ "Mathemalchemy: A Comic Book Adventure in Math and Art". Mathemalchemy. Retrieved 2023-03-03.
- ^ "Visualizing Mathematics With 3D Printing by Henry Segerman" reviewed by Laura Taalman, The American Mathematical Monthly, 22 Mar 2018, pp. 379-384
- ^ Susan Goldstine’s Mathematical Artworks
- ^ a b c Art Installation Celebrates the Beauty and Whimsy of Math Duke Today, November 9, 2021
- ^ a b c d Mathemalchemy to Open at NAS Cultural Programs of the National Academy of Sciences, Jan. 12, 2022
- ^ a b c d Ars Mathemalchemica: From Math to Art and Back Again by S. Goldstine, E. Paley, and H. Segerman, Notices of the American Mathematical Society, Vol 69, No 7, 2022
- ^ a b Mathemalchemy: A Playful Pandemic Project", by Kimberly A. Roth and Jessica K. Sklar, MAA Focus, October/November 2021, pp. 20-23
- ^ Juniata College Presents Mathemalchemy, Huntingdon Daily News, Jun 18, 2022
- ^ Mathemalchemy at the Beaty Biodiversity Museum University of British Columbia
- ^ Traveling multimedia project celebrates math at Mathematics The Northerner, December 6, 2023