Eightfold way: The sculpture
type: Item
instance of: scholarly article
zbMATH Open document ID: 0991.00003
author: Claire Ferguson
author: Helaman Ferguson
publication date: 2002-09-09T00:00:00Z
full work available at URL: Book35
Mathematics Subject Classification ID: 00A69
Mathematics Subject Classification ID: 00A71
zbMATH DE Number: 1574984
zbMATH Keywords: geometry
zbMATH Keywords: symmetry
zbMATH Keywords: mathematical sculpture
zbMATH Keywords: mathematics and art
MaRDI profile type: Publication
title: Eightfold way: The sculpture
review text: The sculpture ``\textit{The eightfold way}'' is a work of art created by the famous mathematical sculptor Helaman Ferguson in the early 1990s. Permanently installed at the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute (MSRI) since 1993, this sculpture reflects some of the beauty and esthetics of a very remarkable mathematical object. Namely, it is the famous Klein quartic curve that materializes by Ferguson's sculpture, together with its amazing number of symmetries and other geometric peculiarities.NEWLINENEWLINENEWLINEIn this essay, the artist himself and Claire Ferguson describe the process of creating the sculpture, including the thinking, feeling, and physical making that culminated in this fascinating piece of graphic art. The authors vividly explain the artist's viewpoint: mathematics is an art form, which need not remain invisible; some mathematics evokes art, and some art evokes mathematics. Then, together with many impressive illustrations, they cover the following topics linked with the creation of the sculpture: Ramanujan--Michelangelo, Geometry-Topology, Counting-Philosophy, Geometry Center-MSRI, Serpentine-Marble, Athena-Escher, and Digitization -- The Stewart Platform.NEWLINENEWLINENEWLINEIt is very amazing to learn, from the artist's report, to what great extent mathematics is intimately related to fine art.NEWLINENEWLINENEWLINEFor the entire collection see Zbl 0941.00006, and Zbl 0991.00005 for a review of the paperback edition.
reviewed by: Werner Kleinert
description: scientific article