week 2: math & art

I was never into mathematics; I always struggled to wrap my head around numbers, equations, formulas. I only really enjoyed mathematics when I understood it—which was almost always after many laborious hours and many eraser marks later. It wasn’t until I took my first art class in high school that I realized how much art is contingent on mathematics and vice versa. In my high school art class, we were required to use grids and rulers to detail the space of paper before we began any assignment. Mathematics gave our art a sense of precision and refinement; there was an inherent attention to detail. I am not a good drawer, but I found that learning this and using mathematics as a tool aided in the artistic process.

Crosswell, Kylie. Elephant. 11 Mar. 2019.  Note: we had to erase the grid at the end, but I promise it was there.



Crosswell, Kylie. Shapes. 1 Mar. 2019. 



In Professor Vesna’s lecture, she details Brunelleschi’s contributions to art and mathematics with the concept of perspective (Vesna 13:17). Using the concept of perspective, Brunelleschi endeavored to translate three-dimensional images upon a flat surface (Morris 2001). A way in which Brunelleschi did this was using a mirror and scale to draw the Baptistery (Gaining Perspective). In doing so, Brunelleschi was able to utilize mathematical calculations to map out his drawing and convey a sense of depth through converging lines. These calculations allowed for accuracy. 

A New Perspective. (A) Brunelleschi's Experiment. https://www.researchgate.net/figure/A-new-perspective-a-Brunelleschis-experiment-confirming-the-correspondence-between_fig5_312659427.


Overall, I really enjoyed learning about the imbrication of art and math. Something that especially shocked me was how math is woven into music. Music is something absolutely fundamental to my life. It was really interesting to learn that—along with drawings, sculptures, and paintings—our understanding of music and harmony is rooted in mathematics, as discovered by Pythagoras (ORIGO Education). After all, music is embedded in notions of rhythm, scale, counts, and more (Math & Music). 

“The Simple Math of Music Theory.” YouTube, YouTube, 30 May 2021, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbfnDSpIg0U. 


 Given all of this information, I would say that mathematics, art, and science are various understandings and perspectives of life that ultimately bleed into one another.




Citations 

“Gaining Perspective.” The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art - Kansas City, https://nelson-atkins.org/gates/gaining-perspective.html. 

“Mathematics & Music.” American Mathematical Society, http://www.ams.org/publicoutreach/math-and-music#:~:text=Counting%2C%20rhythm%2C%20scales%2C%20intervals,musicians%20are%20connected%20to%20mathematics. 

Morris, Roderick Conway. “How Math Put It All in Perspective.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 15 Dec. 2001, https://www.nytimes.com/2001/12/15/style/IHT-how-math-put-it-all-in-perspective.html. 

ORIGO Education. “Proof in History: The Relationship between Maths and Art.” ORIGO Education | Primary School Mathematics Resources and Programs, 14 Dec. 2021, https://www.origoeducation.com.au/blog/proof-in-history-the-intertwined-relationship-between-maths-and-art/. 

Vesna, Victoria. “Mathematics-PT1-ZeroPerspectiveGoldenMean.” YouTube, YouTube, 9 Apr. 2012, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMmq5B1LKDg&t=1s. 


Image citations

A New Perspective. (A) Brunelleschi's Experiment. https://www.researchgate.net/figure/A-new-perspective-a-Brunelleschis-experiment-confirming-the-correspondence-between_fig5_312659427.

Crosswell, Kylie. Elephant. 11 Mar. 2019. 

Crosswell, Kylie. Shapes. 1 Mar. 2019.  

“The Simple Math of Music Theory.” YouTube, YouTube, 30 May 2021, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbfnDSpIg0U. 


Comments

  1. JackPedersenDESMA9April 16, 2023 at 7:56 PM

    Hi Kylie, I really enjoyed reading through your post this week. I too was never into mathematics while studying. The numbers would always get lost and confuse me. I really liked your explanation of how Brunelleschi's contributions to art lead to gaining multiple different perspectives. Great work!

    ReplyDelete

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