I have a good friend who does not care for the sorts of poetry that are written today. When I asked what he likes he cited "When I Was One-and-Twenty" by A E Housman (1859-1936) and the sonnet "Ozymandias" by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822). My own preferences in poems, on the other hand, are less certain. I like to explore, to discover what new things may be said within new forms and constraints. The following selection, "Notes on Numbers" by Richard Kostelanetz, introduces some of the ideas that this artist/writer/critic explores in his visual poetry -- with numbers -- examples of which are available through links offered at the end of this posting.
Notes on Numbers by Richard Kostelanetz
Showing posts with label art. Show all posts
Showing posts with label art. Show all posts
Sunday, December 13, 2015
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
17 syllables -- and other art
What is he talking about? What does he mean?
The thought-provoking riddle posed by these 17 syllables (presented here as 3 square stanzas) from Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) is something I found on the the wall of the National Gallery of Modern Art in Rome, not far from a replica of "Fountain" by Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968). Photos of both are shown below.
The thought-provoking riddle posed by these 17 syllables (presented here as 3 square stanzas) from Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) is something I found on the the wall of the National Gallery of Modern Art in Rome, not far from a replica of "Fountain" by Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968). Photos of both are shown below.
What you are
regarding
as a gift
is a
problem
for you
to solve.
Labels:
4th dimension,
art,
Ludwig Wittgenstein,
Marcel Duchamp,
problem,
square
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
Long division is difficult . . .
Last Monday included a visit with old friends of whom I see too little, Silver Spring artist Mark Behme -- with whom I did some art-poetry collaboration a few years back -- and Chevy Chase artist-writer-economist-activist, Kyi May Kaung. After lunch at nearby Mandalay we three walked to Mark's studio and hung out for a while, admiring and talking about his new work. When I arrived home, I dug out several poems developed from Mark's sculpture -- finding some pieces I'd not thought about for a while. Here is one of these, a mathy poem that partners with Mark's "Split Tales."
Which Girl Am I? by JoAnne Growney
Which Girl Am I? by JoAnne Growney
The girl who’s not forced to divide
into the good girl and the real one
is a lucky one. I was
eleven
when I felt a crack begin.
Labels:
art,
division,
girl,
JoAnne Growney,
Kyi May Kaung,
Mark Behme,
math,
poetry,
sculpture,
split,
two
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Sieve of Eratosthenes
The Sieve of Eratosthenes by Robin Chapman
He was an ancient Greek
looking for primes,
those whole numbers divisible
only by 1 and themselves,
those new arrivals on the block,
fresh additions to the stock
of indivisibles spilling through
future time (for what is time
Saturday, September 15, 2012
A poem for a math-friend
On July 14, 2012, my good friend, Toni Carroll, passed on. I first knew Toni in the 1980s as a colleague in the department of mathematical sciences at Bloomsburg University. Her warmth and inclusiveness drew many people to her and I was one of these. In my view she also was fearless. While I continued to contemplate action, she moved quickly toward righting an injustice. I have learned from her to be a bit more brave.
Labels:
abstract algebra,
art,
circle,
disk,
friend,
math,
mathy,
Mobius strip,
poetry,
symmetries,
Toni Carroll
Thursday, July 5, 2012
Visit BRIDGES -- for (art and) poetry
This growing-then-melting syllable-snowball poem is offered in recognition of mathematician-and-poet Sarah Glaz and as a reminder of the poetry reading Glaz is organizing -- to be held at the 2012 BRIDGES Math-Art conference at Towson University, July 25-29.
Labels:
algebra,
art,
Bridges Math-Art 2012,
JoAnne Growney,
poetry,
Sarah Glaz,
snowball,
Towson
Friday, January 14, 2011
Rather like an elephant
What is mathematics?
These days I am outside of mathematics looking in and my views of the subject are more complex than during the days when I was a professor and mathematician. Back in my math-prof days -- when I moaned about those who held the view that mathematics is merely computation -- I tried to explain to uncompreheding friends the role of calculation within mathematics with this analogy: computation is to mathematics as spelling is to poetry. But those for whom computation is all of their mathematics do not accept this argument. Indeed, I myself now have the notion that one can navigate life competently without algebra -- much as I get along without Spanish or Chinese. But I regret not knowing them -- they are, like algebra, among the world's important languages.
These days I am outside of mathematics looking in and my views of the subject are more complex than during the days when I was a professor and mathematician. Back in my math-prof days -- when I moaned about those who held the view that mathematics is merely computation -- I tried to explain to uncompreheding friends the role of calculation within mathematics with this analogy: computation is to mathematics as spelling is to poetry. But those for whom computation is all of their mathematics do not accept this argument. Indeed, I myself now have the notion that one can navigate life competently without algebra -- much as I get along without Spanish or Chinese. But I regret not knowing them -- they are, like algebra, among the world's important languages.
Labels:
art,
calculation,
computation,
elephant,
John Godfrey Saxe,
mathematician,
nonsense,
pattern,
poetry,
professor
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Art, poetry, and mathematics -- and Rafael Alberti
On September 23 I was privileged to hear Annalisa Crannell, mathematics professor at Lancaster's Franklin and Marshall College, speak on "Math and Art: the Good, the Bad, and the Pretty." This informative presentation, sponsored by the Mathematical Association of America (MAA) and pitched toward undergraduates, showed ways that artists use mathematics.
Labels:
Annalisa Crannell,
art,
Carolyn Tipton,
complexity,
flat,
infinity,
MAA,
mathematics,
perspective,
plane,
poetry,
Rafael Alberti,
sonnet,
space
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Poetry-and-Math -- Interdisciplinary Courses
On July 1 my posting considered math-poetry anthologies and began with a reference to Against Infinity, the discovery of which was a catalyst for my own inclusion of poetry in my mathematics classrooms. Other mathematicians and writers have gone further and developed interdisciplinary courses--such courses are the topic for this posting.
I begin with a small item from Against Infinity, this one a "Found Poem" by Elaine Romaine (found in the math textbook Calclulus on Manifolds by Michael Spivak):
I begin with a small item from Against Infinity, this one a "Found Poem" by Elaine Romaine (found in the math textbook Calclulus on Manifolds by Michael Spivak):
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