Week 2 - Math + Art

Math and art have been closely related throughout history. Before this week's materials, I did not think these fields were related because art and life are unpredictable, whereas math is all about being able to predict and understand the world we live in. Anyone can make art the way they want to, but anyone cannot solve a math problem and get  the correct answer the way they want to. However, there are some examples referenced from the lecture that make me consider otherwise. 

For example, there are a lot of patterns in life that we can deduce from relating back to math, such as geometric beadwork. Geometric beadwork uses tiny beads that are in the same shape to create an overall picture, often in a different shape than the beads themselves (McKinnon). By using shapes to create pictures, we are using math and art together.


Beningfield, Karen. “/Petal-Triangle-Growth-1.” CONTEMPORARY GEOMETRIC BEADWORK,

            https://beadmobile.files.wordpress.com/2022/01/petal-triangle-growth-1.jpg?w=650. 


I also realized that art can help promote math. This is shown through the popular film (a form of art) “Good Will Hunting.” In this movie, the main character Will is talented at solving math problems, which is portrayed as likable and heroic by the film (Veisdal). This encourages the audience to pursue math, wanting to be like the protagonist. Likewise, this encourages mathematicians to watch more math related films, promoting art.



The Math Problems from Good Will Hunting, w/ Solutions, Miramax Pictures,

            https://miro.medium.com/max/1400/1*4x7ZdmE1Mj6g_AVnd3fEAA.png. 


Another way art and math are related is through the representation of color through the RGB system (Codrops). Mathematically, we can map out the shades of colors using the concentration of red, green, and blue colors (“HTML RGB and RGBA Colors”). Learning about this was very insightful for me because color has so much variation from lighting, shade, material–yet we are able to classify any color we see to some degree of accuracy by using math (Jones).



Soueidan, Sara. “Rgb().” Codrops, Codrops, https://i7x7p5b7.stackpathcdn.com/codrops/wp

            content/uploads/2015/01/AdditiveColor.png. 

Choosing a piece of art by Ann Marie Bone, titled “Into the Rainbow,” I can clearly see the influence of math on art.


Bone, Ann Marie. “Into the Rainbow.” Rainbow Paintings, FineArtAmerica.com, https://images.fineartamerica.com/images-medium-large-5/into-the-rainbow-ann-marie-bone.jpg. 

The perspective and geometric shape of a triangle makes the roast look realistic. Since the art is digital, the colors must have been chosen by their specific RGB values. Color is a huge part of art, and artists need to be precise in which color they choose. They can do this through RGB (math)! Based on what I’ve learned this week, I don’t think there is a juxtaposition between math, art, and science. In fact, I think using all three together enhances each field.



Works Cited

Codrops, Team. “RGB().” Codrops, Codrops, 4 Feb. 2015, https://tympanus.net/codrops/css_reference/rgb/.

“HTML RGB and RGBA Colors.” HTML RGB and RGBA Colors, Refsnes Data, https://www.w3schools.com/html/html_colors_rgb.asp#:~:text=RGB%20Color%20Values&text=For%20example%2C%20rgb(255%2C,blue)%20are%20set%20to%200. 

Jones, Andrew Zimmerman. “The Visible Light Spectrum Contains the Colors We See.” ThoughtCo, DotDash Meredith, 14 Feb. 2020, https://www.thoughtco.com/the-visible-light-spectrum-2699036. 

McKinnon, Kate. “Welcome to April!” CONTEMPORARY GEOMETRIC BEADWORK, 1 Apr. 2022, https://beadmobile.wordpress.com/2022/04/01/welcome-to-april/. 

Veisdal, Jørgen. “The Math Problems from Good Will Hunting, w/ Solutions.” Medium, Cantor's Paradise, 17 Apr. 2021, https://www.cantorsparadise.com/the-math-problems-from-good-will-hunting-w-solutions-b081895bf379. 

Comments

  1. mayasrinivasanDESMA9April 6, 2022 at 10:21 PM

    Hi Vivek,
    Your examples within this post were really insightful! I especially liked how you mentioned Good Will Hunting, as I've never made a connection between how different forms of media, such as films, can form a bridge between the arts and sciences. It seems as though people believe that the two fields of study are extremely different, and there is no way for them to overlap. However, as you've mentioned in your post, they join together in a plethora of different ways and are useful to both artists and scientists. In this instance, using math in conjunction with art proves to show the beginnings of a 'third-culture,' as mentioned in last week's lectures and readings.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Myles Misener-DaleyApril 16, 2023 at 7:55 PM

    Hi Vivek,
    I really enjoyed reading your blog as I agreed with quite a few points you mentioned. I never thought about the promotion of arts via math and vice versa. I also liked your example of mathematics influence on art via beadwork and the understanding of distance and space to formulate art. I do not understand why there is such a separation between the two fields as there is plenty of evidence to suggest the influence they have on one another is beneficial and promotes advancements to mathematics and art simultaneously.

    ReplyDelete

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