Art and Math Project , Personal Response.

I created this logo 10 years ago, when I started a small atelier where I taught art for kids. The name was "Art for Success," and the logo represented the letter "e" with a paintbrush. "e" because it is transcendental and irrational. I thought those adjectives were perfect for my art space and the art experiences of the kids.

 Here is my reflection after working with the Art and Math Project for our 342 class:

The artwork: 

12 Golden E-Chains Spiral

by Philippe Leblanc

40.0 x 24.0 x 24.0 cm

Plexiglass, colored glass beads, nylon thread, metallic squeeze beads

2025

As a Student, I learned about the concept of catenary curves, which I don’t remember having learnt before. I reviewed the concept of the Euler number, its origins and applications. I reviewed the golden square. The Euler number is an answer to the need to connect real and imaginary numbers.

I confirmed the importance of detailed observation and collaboration. Some details about the artwork were called to my attention by my peers. Like the double spiral where the beads were hanging from, and the fact that each chain was circumscribed inside a golden rectangle.

As a teacher, I confirmed that art can help to visualize concepts differently. Math can be beautiful. Sometimes we can do repetitive activities like beading and knitting to send our mind to a meditative stage. Maybe beading, as a repetitive and mechanical activity, doesn’t contain a math concept itself, but we can plant the seed of curiosity during these moments.

The most fulfilling part was being able to re-create a piece of art with accessible sources. Based on a concept that I could never have imagined could be an inspiration for an art project. This opened my mind to use math as a source of inspiration for my personal art projects.

At the beginning, I doubted how to connect this piece of art with the BC curriculum. This was my main difficulty, especially because I am not familiar with the curriculum: fortunately, Shannon has been teaching in Australia for so many years that even with a different curriculum, she was acquainted with the subjects in secondary school.

The practical difficulty was the process of calculating the length of each chain, due to the lack of information. We didn’t have the size of the beads the artist used. So, we decided to count them from the original piece of art. This way, we could determine the length of the longest 6 chains and extrapolate the rest.

Personally, I internalized that a piece of art could be a strong source of curiosity. After having replicated the piece, I wanted to know more about the Euler number. I spent a couple of hours reading about the history of this constant and the practical applications of this constant in Finance, Statistics and Calculus.

This kind of work can help me to design creative lesson plans around complex math concepts. Focusing on creating curiosity for learning what is in the curriculum. I can start with art exercises that approach a complex abstract concept, such as Pi, or compound interest. It will also allow different perspectives among the students to participate and understand.

 The materials were affordable, and I think there are no limitations with the budget. I would keep this as a group activity, in case some students don’t enjoy the meticulous job of beading, measuring and counting.