KARA van Heerden from Framesby High was placed second overall in the “maths in nature” (Grade 10 to 12) category, with her artwork “The functions of a zebra” in a national maths-art competition, run by Nelson Mandela University’s Govan Mbeki Mathematics Development Centre (GMMDC).
High school learners from across South Africa have won accolades for depicting the links between maths and art in unique artworks, in the first nationally run mathematical art competition.
The top-placed winners in the competition drew their inspiration from the repeated mathematical patterns evident in ancient Khoi and San cave paintings and traditional Zulu beadwork, as well as the mathematical make-up of man-made landmarks, and the mathematical mysteries of outer space.
Others looked for the maths-art connection in majestic animals, including rhinos and cheetahs.
“We were thrilled at the high calibre of the 600 entries we received, although it was a tremendous battle to choose the 12 overall winners,” said GMMDC competition coordinator, Carine Steyn.
The competition was open to all high school learners, who could enter artworks in two categories “maths in nature” or “maths in man-made designs”. They were adjudicated not only on artistic merit, but on how they represented the links between mathematics and the arts.
The top 40 entries will be exhibited at the international Bridges Conference in Linz, Austria from July 14 to 20, which promotes research and interest in the connections between maths and art.
