Why Math and Art?

I love how math is the abstract pursuit of artistic beauty.... like poetry, music, paintings and much more! Numbers represent quantities and concepts -- some imaginary while others concrete...., we use math to formulate ideas and to express the world around us! Interestingly enough, math intertwines with art in all forms, be them man-made or natural. Just look around you! Fractals, Golden ratios, tessellations, architecture, music, anatomy, animation, movement, dancing, sounds, inventions, the expansion of the universe, the swelling of the seas, lightening storms, the shape of virtually everything is patterns and much can be explained with math! .... When we manipulate and represent ideas through this "language of math" we find a sense of the true beauty, and therefore the art, of mathematics! It seems there’s a purposeful cosmic order to the universe, …And that’s why I want to share how math is an art form that begs us to reflect and to identify with a sense of balance, harmony, and appeal that is humanly breathtaking and definitely worth appreciating! 😊

  • Math and art provide opportunities to express creative ideas. Both can inspire form and composition, and provide ways to communicate intellectual perceptions. Here are some of my suggestions (for all K - 12 educators):

    WHY CONNECT MATH & ART? By exploring and discovering relevance between the arts and the field of math, students engage in creative thinking about the meaning and structure of the world around them —- helping them grasp and retain knowledge and to gain a lifelong interest in learning.

    SUGGESTED TOPICS THAT LINK ART WITH MATH:

    CULTURES:

    Native American Indian: geometric shapes in Ojibwe Dream Catchers; sand art; patterns in Navajo blankets; rotational symmetries in Hopi baskets, etc.

    African: batik fabric designs; jewelry, pottery, sculptures, housing styles, Akuaba figures, etc.

    Asian: geometric symmetry in tan-grams, origami designs, paintings, etc.

    Middle Eastern: elaborate tessellations in mosaic tile motifs, etc.

    Roman, Greek, Egyptian: the Golden ratio as seen in vases, paintings, architecture, and sculptures, tiled tessellations on walls and floors, etc.

    Music from various cultures and times

    Mathematical & Artistic Form:

    • The geometric ornamentation in Islamic art shows how figures display aesthetic appeal

    • The various folds and constructions in Japanese origami form interesting shapes and sculptures created from polygons and polyhedron show balance and form

    • Artistic perspective and the Golden Section, also known as Phi (irrational number that begins as 1.618034…) —- found in famous paintings, such as works by Piet Mondrian, Leonardo DaVinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Rembrandt, Salvador Dali, Seurat, etc.

    • Investigate geometric proportions, golden sections, and artistic perspectives in architecture and sculptures… For example: Michelangelo’s David; The Porch of the Maidens and the Parthenon in Athens; the Great Pyramid in Egypt; Chartes Cathedral,; Le Corbussier; the Taj Mahal; the United Nations Building; the CN Tower, and so much more!

    • Examine structural geometric properties in honeycombs, in galaxies, in snowflakes, in the curvature of a rose, on pineapples and tortoise shells, etc.

    Artistic & Mathematical patters in the natural world:

    • Notice fractal self-similarity in growth patterns and fractal dimensions in trees, ferns, coastlines, clouds, lightning, rivers, shells, veins, etc. Challenge students to discover more!

    • As mentioned, the Golden Section is found in the proportional growth patterns of plants, humans, dolphins, logarithmic spiraling shells, moths, penguins, tigers, spiders, and more….

    • Observe Fibonacci numbers in teh spiral growth of stems, leaves, branches, petals, shells, and seed patterns of sunflowers and pinecones ++

    There is no limit to all you can investigate tying mathematics to art!

    • Provide appropriate resources and opportunities to help spark student interest in art and math — include objects, books, visits to art galleries, web sites, nature hikes, guest speakers ++

    • Ask leading questions to encourage students to discover their own connections between math and art

    • Give students class time to brainstorm, to explore, to write outlines, and to draft reports

    • Have students choose an art object to investigate and to report on its mathematical significance to the class.