I was planning out a solo show (“Whiskers of Memory: Intimate Animal Portraits …” at Art Space Vincennes, in 2024), and needed to scale thumbnail images to the 1:24 ratio floor plan. The venue was an old house and thus the walls were not long runs, like those in many galleries, but rather they were punctuated by windows and doors. This variation of wall length dictated where different sized works could hang. So that complicated considerations while choosing what to exhibit.
(Thank goodness for internet specialty calculators!)
This situation made me think of, how, when I asked my high school math teacher, so many years ago, what math was useful for, there was no answer. I wasn’t smarting off. I really wanted to know.
Well, here is my answer, because I use math all the time!
Following is a short list (off the top of my head) of how math is used in art:
-To scale images up or down.
For example, up for creating a mural from a small drawing.
And down for planning an exhibition by fitting images to scale on a floor plan.
(And for creating that scaled grid-ed floor plan in the first place.)
-To figure ratios (another way of scaling up or down, really).
For example, when choosing what size canvas or other surface, will go best with a particular sized initial design or reference photo, or a specific space.
And for resizing images to fit the specifics of each social media or print media.
-Figuring material usage.
For example, to figure how many canvases (and what sizes) can be cut from a bolt of cotton duct…
or how much paint…
-Likewise measuring/cutting/planning/ marking – spaces, angles, patterns and designs.
-Similarly adjusting recipes to scale.
I.E. DIY fluid paint from tube paint,
or paint water treatment chemicals so the wastewater can be processed for safe disposal.
-Calculating percentages for taxes, gallery commissions, postage and other price calculations.
-And figuring mileage, hours, or fun. For documenting, pricing, and planning.
That’s all I can think of at the moment.
(Of course, that math presents interesting puzzles that stimulate the brain, would have been a good answer too.)
Good thoughts, Lisa! I have a couple projects where I work with middle- and high school math teachers, and they often face the same questions: “Why do I have to learn this?” “What’s it good for?” When it comes to things like proportions and ratios, there are applications all over the place. Even some of the basic concepts in algebra and geometry are used by most people every day, whether they realize it or not (variables, equations, coordinates, line slopes, and geometric relationships). But it’s harder to find everyday uses for slightly more advanced algebra or trigonometry and functions. (Okay, if you want to measure the height of a tree using angles, you’ll probably need to know a little about sines and cosines.)
Sometimes I think the problem isn’t that people don’t like math so much as they don’t like the way it’s taught. Many people have experienced it as a daily humiliation rather than an opportunity to explore interesting puzzles or figure things out that they might like to know. Many times in school, grades and curricular calendars get in the way of teaching and learning. Why not teach math in the context of things the kids actually might like to do? For example, when I was making and fixing guitars, I learned the formula for placement of the frets on the fretboard. Then a couple years later, in a flash of insight, I figured out *why* the formula worked, and that felt really powerful. But how many of us have those experiences?
Hi Bob, Yes, I think an integrated approach to teaching math with other subjects makes good sense. And isn’t it funny how insight shows up at odd times!