Mathematics of Art
Fall 2009

Professor Annalisa Crannell
Office Hours: by appointment and whenever my door is open
Office: Bonchek College House and 204 Stager
E-mail: annalisa.crannell@fandm.edu
Web Page: http://edisk.fandm.edu/annalisa.crannell    
Telephone: 717-291-4222


Preceptors: Basil Coutifaris and Steph Douglas


General Remarks on the Course    
Welcome to Franklin & Marshall College!  The aim of this course is to do just that—to welcome you into a community of scholars.  At the heart of our community lies a dedication to writing and scholarship, and during the semester you will get a chance to partake in both of these activities.

The two main questions that we will be asking this semester are these:  How do we fit a 3-dimensional world on a 2-dimensional canvas?  and How do we look at a piece of perspective art?  Toward the end of the semester, we will build on these concepts to explore other kinds of dimensions (we’ll tour 4-dimensional space and draw several fractional-dimensional objects).   You will learn to answer our two main questions by asking and solving geometric problems, by drawing your answers to these questions, by reading, and--of course--by communicating your answers to others both orally and in writing.

In addition, you will become the class expert on one piece of art.  You will first explore the history and artistic significance of this piece by doing research in the library--that is, you will learn what other scholars have said about this piece of art.  You will then apply what you have learned in the class to describe the mathematical basis of perspective of this piece of art--that is, you will BE the scholar on this aspect of this piece.

In the past, students have used the ideas they learned in this course as the basis for future projects at F&M and in graduate school:  studying architecture, creating mathematics education projects, doing research on tiling patterns in Spain and Italy, and more.   Let me know about your own interests and goals!  



Course Materials (What You’ll Need)
from the bookstore:
    • A copy of Flatland, by E. A. Abbott.
    • Rules for Writers, by Diana Hacker
from the Math Office
    • Viewpoints:  Mathematical Perspective and Fractal Geometry in Art
            miscellaneous
                • Access to a word-processor and to an e-mail account.
                • A stapler.    
                • A brain.
            from the art store (see the attached list)


Grading/Calendar
eight 1-page papers    (20%)    almost every Wednesday, 4:45 p.m.
first 4-page paper    (10%)    early October
second 4-page page    (20%)    November 16
final paper    (20%)    December 17
Math/Art homeworks    (20%)    weekly
final art project    (10%)    December 17


Attendance
You will be learning a lot from your classmates and they will be learning a lot from you, so I expect that you come prepared, with proper materials, and that you participate fully.  Please be advised that Math Department and F&M policy state that penalties (including grade reduction and/or dismissal from the course) may be assessed for excessive, unexcused absences.

 
Weekly Writing Assignments
With a few exceptions, you will have a 1-page paper due every Wednesday at 5 p.m., and I will count the best eight of these papers toward your final grade. There are 14 weeks in the class, and you will have two 5-page papers due (see below); there will be two Mondays with no papers because of breaks.  This means you may choose to skip writing a paper twice during the semester without any serious danger to your grade.  I will usually announce the topic of these papers one week in advance, so that you may begin writing during the week and revise your paper over the course of the following weekend.

You should write these papers in a nice 12-point font (Times is nice, but Optima is like shouting); the margins should be no narrower than 0.75 inches; the lines should be 1.5 spaced, and there should be a title, the due-date, and your name at the top of the page.  You may NOT hand in more than one page, despite various temptations to do so.  I want you to think hard about making your writing as concise and forceful as possible.  

 
Weekly Math /Art Assignments
Every week, you will have assignments that involve drawing.  You will be learning to draw by using math (or perhaps you will be learning to solve mathematics problems by drawing).  A good drawing takes time; I expect that you will spend at least 2 hours on your sketches, so make sure you carve out time for this.  Most students tell me that these sketches (a) take longer than they would have expected and (b) give them a real sense of accomplishment.  

 
The long papers
Over the course of the semester, you will “adopt” a piece of art that uses (or perhaps deliberately misuses) perspective to create an illusion—I will say more about this assignment once class begins.  During the first few weeks of class, you will choose the piece of art and make sure that I approve of your choice.  In October, you will write a paper describing the piece and placing it in an artistic context.  In November, you will write a paper describing the mathematics of the perspective in this piece.  Each of these two papers will become part of the reading assignments for the entire class.  For this reason, each of these papers will have 3 different deadlines: one for one-third of the class; another for another third of the class; and a third for the last five students.

We're going to learn a lot about library research: this link (developed by our class librarian, Louise Kulp) might help you get started.

The class times on the Fridays after these assignments are due will be devoted to discussing and critiquing the papers that your peers have written.  All students will be expected to participate in these discussions.

On December 17, the final ten-page paper will be due (your final art project will be due the same day).  This paper will describe both the artistic and mathematical aspects of your work . . . that is, it will combine and improve upon the ideas and prose of the previous two papers.

 
Reading Assignments
I expect you to read your text, your classmates’ papers, and (eventually) Flatland and to be prepared to discuss these assignments.  In addition, you will be reading scholarly work related to your “adopted” piece of art.

 
Help
I love to talk about math, art, or life in general.  Please feel free to ask me questions both in and out of class; I've got a lot of office hours and am around a good deal of the time.  I’m even more congenial if you bring me chocolate.  

Your preceptors, Basil and Steph, are brilliant and creative.  In addition, they write prose that is specific and evocative.  May you do the same.

The Writing Center (717-291-3866) is available for those who want help with their written projects, and there are also several undergraduate mathematics teaching assistants who hold regular hours (their schedules will be announced shortly).


-- this page last updated September 1, 2009, by Annalisa Crannell