Statue takes math to new heights

[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/math-statue.jpg” caption=”The statue of Greek mathematician Anatolius that hangs in Hamilton Hall will be officially unveiled on Sunday, Jan. 20 at 2 p.m. Photo by Susan Bubak.”]If you find yourself standing under the east light well in Hamilton Hall, look up and you'll meet a historical figure — not in the flesh, but a sculptural version of the third century Greek mathematician Anatolius.

The figure is part of a three-piece sculpture installed last month to complement the award-winning interior of the James Stewart Centre for Mathematics. It will be officially unveiled on Sunday, Jan. 20 at 2 p.m. during a reception in Hamilton Hall.

“The idea of the project was to try and reach out to the community, so we wanted to avoid internal artwork that only spoke to mathematicians,” said Bradd Hart, chair of the Department of Mathematics & Statistics. “The statue includes a community touch by incorporating graffiti of mathematical equations, varying in complexity, written by everyone from children to McMaster's own professors.”

Hamilton artists Bryce Kanbara and Brian Kelly were inspired by the figure of Anatolius because he was also known as a peacemaker.

“We like the idea of having a human-centered sculpture because we wanted to present math as human-centered instead of being abstract,” said Kanbara.

The artists further incorporated mathematics by considering their own experience with mathematics from primary school to high school. They wanted to reflect this general experience by including mathematical equations on the sculpture. While some of the equations were handwritten on the sculpture, the children's equations were traced on using copies of their schoolwork and projective geometry.

“We gathered handwritten samples from various student notebooks, and then scanned the pages to be projected onto the sculpture. We liked the idea of including graffiti on the piece,” explained Kanbara.

The massive sculpture took more than two and a half years to complete, entailing much collaboration within the faculty and with the artists. The figure stood in a corner of the artists' studio for some time, while professors visited to record their own mathematical equations on the figure.

Now completed and installed, the sculpture hangs in three parts at the top of the light well, with Anatolius slightly larger than life size. Anatolius's robe is covered in mathematical graffiti to symbolize the development of the subject from classical times to the present day.

A small globe hangs above his head, representing the contributions of mathematics to astronomy and the origins of geometry. A cherub on a concrete beam just below the skylight appears to be drawing Anatolius upwards into the sky.

“It's fanciful as well as being thought-provoking,” said Hart. “We hope it stimulates those who enter Hamilton Hall, whether they're looking to find out more about mathematics, or whether they're looking to do some mathematics of their own.”