Week 2: Math + Art

Math and Art are two fields that have always been thought to be unrelated. Before Professor Vesna’s lecture, I too was unable to see the connections between math and art in daily life. It surprised me that a lot of what society defined as beautiful and aesthetic art could be explained by math, and in fact involves mathematical concepts in its conception and making. Conversely, visual art can be thought of as the depiction of mathematical concepts in an elegant and effective manner (Cooper).

The introduction of the Golden Ratio in Professor Vesna’s lecture and how this mathematical concept was applied to the world’s most renowned buildings, pyramids and even Mona Lisa (Vesna 22:50-25:50) was mind-blowing to me. Upon further research, I discovered that the concept was also applied in ways that might entertain and amuse us – the Golden Ratio of Beauty Phi (The Economic Times). A cosmetic surgeon had compiled the measurements of the faces of various female celebrities, and calculated a score that determines how close their facial proportions are to the Golden Ratio. Bella Hadid is scientifically the most beautiful woman in the world. Even beauty can now be defined mathematically.

The Golden Ratio applied to facial proportions.

Kinetic Rain is an art installation that I have been fascinated with over the years. It is located in Singapore’s Changi Airport and the airport is a place where I have fond memories of playing with friends, having good food and even somewhere I used to study on the weekends. The Kinetic Rain installation sits at the entrance of the airport and is a sculpture that is composed of 608 metallic ‘raindrops’ that move in an animated sequence to form abstract and three-dimensional forms (ART+COM Studios). Combined with dramatic classical music, it never fails to give me goosebumps when I stop to admire the piece.

The Making of Kinetic Rain.

Screenshots from "The Making of Kinetic Rain", showing the mathematical elements and software programming required to create the art installation.

Despite the fact that it is an art piece, the conception of Kinetic Rain is anything but. In coming up with the choreography for the ‘raindrops’, the creators used 3D mathematical modelling and software programming to test various sequences and to ensure that the positioning of the ‘raindrops’ were precisely controlled at all times to form the pattern desired. Creative elements such as the storyline behind the art piece complemented the mathematical aspects of it to produce this stunning installation. It is clear that Math and Art elevate each other. Mathematical concepts can be used to create and explain art, and art is able to represent math in a beautiful manner.

References 

Vesna, Victoria. “Mathematics-pt1-ZeroPerspectiveGoldenMean.mov.” YouTube, uploaded by UC Online, 10 Apr. 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMmq5B1LKDg. 

Henderson, Linda. “The Fourth Dimension and Non-Euclidean Geometry in Modern Art: Conclusion.” Leonardo, vol. 17, no. 3, 1984, pp. 205-210. JSTOR, doi.org/10.2307/1575193. 

“Science says this is the most beautiful woman in the world.” The Economic Times, 17 Oct. 2019, economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/world-news/science-says-this-is-the-most-beautiful-woman-in-the-world/the-perfect-face/slideshow/71630390.cms. 

ART+COM Studios. “Kinetic Rain, 2012.” ART+COM Studios, 2012, artcom.de/en/?project=kinetic-rain. 

Cooper, Luke. “Art and Mathematics: How the Two Worlds Assist in Building Each Other.” Medium, 10 Aug. 2019, medium.com/nice-slice/art-and-mathematics-a2677a515450. 

<Images and Videos> 

Picture of Golden Ratio calculations imposed on human face, Plus Magazine, 23 Feb. 2010, plus.maths.org/content/myths-maths-golden-ratio. 

“The Making of Kinetic Rain.” YouTube, uploaded by Changi Airport, 4 Jul. 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4-AUVBuZ-4. 

Screenshots from “The Making of Kinetic Rain”, YouTube, uploaded by Changi Airport, 4 Jul. 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4-AUVBuZ-4.