MATH AND THE FINE ARTS
What are the humanities?
Humanities are those studies dealing with the fine arts (painting, drawing, and so on),
literature, philosophy, and cultural science. This field focuses on the idea of expanding
human thought, intellectual skills, and accomplishment through the study of these
branches. Although the humanities seem far removed from mathematics, there are
actually many connections.
Has mathematicsbeen used in art?
Yes, mathematics has been used in art—either consciously or not—over the cen-
turies. Many of the fine arts deal with trying to comprehend the reality around us. And
because both art and math try to explain reality using some concrete or abstract ele-
ments, it’s easy to see the connection.
For example, there are some obvious relationships between art—especially paint-
ing—and mathematics. An observer can use geometry to analyze a painting in terms
of shapes, such as lines, points, circles, or other geometric shapes. Perspective can
also be thought of as a mathematical “quality” of many realistic paintings, allowing
the viewer to see reality (in the case of a painting) in two dimensions. And, in a way,
Jackson Pollock’s method of literally throwing paint on a canvas can be thought of in
terms of fractal geometry.
Mathematicians may work with quantifying and counting, but most of them will
tell you that math is really more than a technical exercise and juggling numbers. Cre-
ativity is involved in discovering nuances in certain mathematics, with the mathe-
matician creatively deciding what to concentrate on in order to solve certain complex 373
MATH IN THE
HUMANITIES