Extended Vision, 2001-02
 Anna Campbell Bliss
At the University of Utah
Cowles Mathematics Building / President's Circle
Salt Lake City

Extended Vision 2001 - 2002 is a multifaceted site specific work that embraces the entire building and explores the range and influence of mathematics in related disciplines, an culture. In a competition organized by the Utah Arts Council the mathematicians asked for art that would help create a stimulating environment and the sense that this is a "house of mathematics."

Numbers and Measure - First Floor Lobby

Numbers were a logical point of entry for a complex work and a fascinating area of historical research. The centuries long development of abstract thinking that led to concepts of quantity, sequence, numeration systems and positional rotation are inferred in the group of plates devoted to Babylonian and Fibonacci numbers culminating in emphasis on zero. The last is overlaid with a random bitstream basic to the computer.

Organizing numbers in patterns and rules of notation gradually led to arithmetic and later to calculating and the development of algebra. Mathematicians also observed relationships with Fibonacci numbers, which are indicated on the diagonal of Pascal's Triangle, bottom row. The Fibonacci sequence has many applications in organic growth patterns and in art. Renaissance artists inspired by Greek art and architecture used the golden mean proportions extensively. Piero della Francesco was a master mathematician as well as artistic genius, developing perspective with great skill. His head studies from "De Prospectiva Pingendi" are shown here. Measurement and close observation provided a balance for his mathematical principles.

By expanding the concept of numbers to include measure, many related arts could be included. I asked a very talented poet if she would do a square poem about numbers. The resulting sonnet is a lively, engaging piece. Dance was an area familiar to me and a surprise to some mathematicians. The choreography of Lucinda Childs is an excellent example of geometric patterning of movement. Movement is also recorded as time in the Swatch photo of Olympic racers. Dan Waldis, composer for the buildings dedication contributed a few bars to represent music. All of these areas could be vastly expanded as a mathematical base whether explicit or implied underlies much of today's art and architecture.

With long corridors in the older building and limited wall space in the modern glass addition, a solo work on one of the three floors would not satisfy the spaces nor the stated goals. Lobbies on three floors became a focal point with additional works extending into the corridors of the old building. Adopting a modular scheme of 18" x 18" anodized aluminum plates in varied clusters helped convey a wide range of ideas while creating a strong concept. Plates were laser etched or screened and in some instances hand painted.

Organizing the plates in clusters suggested the openness of ideas and the possibility of extending them. Students can visualize how they might expand the concept with their own original work and faculty are challenging them to do so. The clusters are also appealing visually as a way of activating the space. As the chief architect for the project commented, "the art made the building come alive."

First Floor: includes basic math concepts. By extending the idea from Numbers to Measure, related arts could be shown. Corridor extensions include Islamic and Greek concepts and later geometry.

Second Floor: explores Intersections with Nature, Sciences, Art and Architecture.

Third Floor: is devoted to mapping outer space from its origins in mythology and early philosophy to the precision of Hubble photography. In the corridors, navigational maps from Portolan charts of the 16th century reveal geometric sightings before instrumentation for longitude.