This is a cultural history of mathematics and art, from antiquity to the present. Mathematicians and artists have long been on a quest to understand the physical world they see before them and the abstract objects they know by thought alone. Taking readers on a tour of the practice of mathematics and the philosophical ideas that drive the discipline, Lynn Gamwell points out the important ways mathematical concepts have been expressed by artists. Sumptuous illustrations of artworks and cogent math diagrams are featured in Gamwell's comprehensive exploration. Gamwell begins by describing mathematics from antiquity to the Enlightenment, including Greek, Islamic, and Asian mathematics. Then focusing on modern culture, Gamwell traces mathematicians' search for the foundations of their science, such as David Hilbert's conception of mathematics as an arrangement of meaning-free signs, as well as artists' search for the essence of their craft, such as Aleksandr Rodchenko's monochrome paintings. She shows that self-reflection is inherent to the practice of both modern mathematics and art, and that this introspection points to a deep resonance between the two fields: Kurt Godel posed questions about the nature of mathematics in the language of mathematics and Jasper Johns asked "What is art?" in the vocabulary of art. Throughout, Gamwell describes the personalities and cultural environments of a multitude of mathematicians and artists, from Gottlob Frege and Benoit Mandelbrot to Max Bill and Xu Bing. Mathematics and Art demonstrates how mathematical ideas are embodied in the visual arts and will enlighten all who are interested in the complex intellectual pursuits, personalities, and cultural settings that connect these vast disciplines.

About the Author
Lynn Gamwell is lecturer in the history of art, science, and mathematics at the School of Visual Arts in New York. She is the author of Exploring the Invisible: Art, Science, and the Spiritual (Princeton).

Reviews
"This is a marvelous coffee table book ... very well researched and documented. It touches upon so many fundamental questions that philosophers, scientists, mathematicians and artists have asked since antiquity. But yet it guides the reader smoothly through all these competing visions and theories without becoming dull or getting lost in abstraction. This is the history of Western civilization with particular interest in art and mathematics, illuminating and instructive, and all wrapped up in a rich, colorful, and fancy book."--Adhemar Bultheel, European Mathematical Society "This is the beauty and power of this book: [Mathematics and Art] is an intellectual tour de force of art history and its interaction with mathematics that will draw most readers, including me, back for further reading and study."--Frank Swetz, MAA Reviews "Excellent new book... Overall this is a comprehensive, valuable and detailed book. It is written in an accessible style, with enough mathematics to interest the technical reader without overwhelming one with an arts background... Its rich anthology is particularly relevant today, given the explosion of interest in the digital arts and the need for digital artists to use maths creatively. I will definitely be keeping it close at hand."--William Latham, New Scientist "The author does an artful job in creating a wide-ranging and beautifully illustrated survey that mathematicians and art historians will enjoy."--John Barrow, The Art Newspaper "This sumptuously illustrated book chronicles the history of mathematics through its intersection with the development of visual art... Gamwell articulates the compelling, far-reaching connections within these fields in a way that is rewarding for scholars yet accessible to non-specialists."--Choice "Beautiful books that display the beauty of art are fine additions to many coffee tables; beautiful books that display the beauty of mathematics are fine additions to few coffee tables. Gamwell's impressive work integrates the beauty of these two disciplines to create a work larger than their sum... A book for all ages and of all ages: truly a brilliant 'millennial' composition!"--Sandra L. Arlinghaus, Mathematical Reviews "This splendidly produced volume will appeal to everybody interested in mathematics and art and offers room for agreement and disagreement with the author... This volume stands out by its richness in contents, its wealth of colour reproductions and, last but not least, its very affordable price."--Dirk Werner, Zentralblatt MATH "This wonderful book gives a very thorough overview of the impact of mathematics (and science) of the visual arts (and architecture) over the centuries."--Eos "An interesting read, filled with paradigm-shifting history and art, the book still posits a linear perspective of the relationship of art and mathematics, specifically recounting the ways math has influenced art."--Karie Brown, Mathematics Teacher "A monumental volume... Excellently illustrated by 523 images... Many highlighted quotations from writings of outstanding personalities of the sciences and the arts make the volume more colourful."--Gyorgy Darvas, Symmetry "Mathematics and Art is an enjoyable read accessible to anyone interested in the history of mathematics and art."--Andre Michael Hahn, British Journal for the History of Science



Book Information
ISBN 9780691165288
Author Lynn Gamwell
Format Hardback
Page Count 576
Imprint Princeton University Press
Publisher Princeton University Press
Weight(grams) 3119g