About 20 events in music, theater, art, dance and photography will be used to explore the relationship between art and mathematics as part of the 2005 CU Year of Art and Math project.
The project is the brainchild of mathematics Professor Carla Farsi of the University of Colorado at Boulder, who enlisted help from many other campus departments and outside organizations including the National Center for Atmospheric Research, the Boulder Public Library and Studio Aiello.
"I hope to make people aware of the fact that mathematics is in the things they love and don't think about as math," Farsi said. "Many, many things can be given a mathematical structure."
The project includes a variety of exhibitions, performances, workshops and a conference to illustrate that math is not just about formulas and logic, but also about structure, symmetry, shape and beauty, Farsi said. Conversely, each event will show that art is not only about emotion, color and aesthetic ideals, but also rhythm, timing, patterns and problem solving.
All events will be held in Boulder and Denver and are open to the public. Most events are free. The project was awarded an $18,000 Colorado Council on the Arts grant for its focus on increasing community participation.
"We are hoping that exciting new art is created as a result of this special year, and that new ideas in math will surface from exchanges between scientists and artists," Farsi said.
"Some types of art can be thought of in a mathematical way," said Farsi, who teaches a class on math and art. "Viewers will notice mathematical structures and scientific processes manifesting in a beautiful, artistic way all around them, thereby bridging the gap between mathematics and art."
CU-Boulder collaborators and contributors include the mathematics department, UMC Art Gallery, art and art history department and theater and dance department. Other CU sponsors include the Center for Arts and Humanities, the Office of the Provost, the College of Arts and Sciences Dean's Excellence Fund, the College of Music, the College of Engineering and the CU Art Museum.
Area collaborators also include the Colorado Women's Art Caucus, the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art and CORE New Art Space.
The year kicks off on Friday, Jan. 14, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. with the opening reception of "Women in Science? Science in Art?" at the UMC Art Gallery, located in the University Memorial Center on the CU-Boulder campus. This event is free and open to the public and features live music, refreshments and talks with the artists and scientist collaborators.
For more information visit the Web site at .
Some of the other 2005 CU Year of Art and Math events will include (details TBA):
Women in Science? Science in Art? Jan. 10- Feb. 11
UMC Art Gallery, CU-Boulder
Women in Art and Math, March 30-April 27
Andrew J. Macky Art Gallery, CU-Boulder
Tad Pfeffer, Exhibition, April 1- 30
NCAR Art Gallery, Boulder
Errante + Elizabeth McNutt Concert, April 22
Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, Boulder
Mathematics in Dance and Choreography, Lecture and recital, April 27
CU Theatre and Dance Department, Boulder
Math/QRMS 1130 Art Exhibit: Mathematics in Other Cultures, month of April
Norlin Library 3rd floor NW Gallery, CU-Boulder
Art + Math= X Conference, with a Digital Art Web Conference Exhibit, June 2-5
University of Colorado at Boulder
Art + Math= X Workshop, June 5-12
TarFactory at Studio Aiello, Denver
In the Beginning there was LogosÂ…, June 3-19
Core New Art Space Gallery, Denver
Fabric, Form and Formula: The Marriage of Math and Quilting, June 3-July 17
Boulder Public Library Canyon Gallery, Boulder
Andrew May's Mathematics Made Music, Concert, June 4
Boulder Public Library Auditorium, Boulder
The Fabulous Tom Noddy Father's Day Bubble Show, June 19
National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder
Dismas Rotta and Charles Wooldridge, June 5-10
Studio Aiello, Denver
Breaking the Code, Oct. 27-29, Nov. 2-5
CU Theatre and Dance Department Main Stage