Self-Portrait: Brainstorm

My life experience includes the joy and frustration of being a woman gifted at mathematics. Just as mosaics builds upon artists’ works over centuries, math builds upon the work of mathematicians, some equally ancient, and many were women whose fundamental contributions remain obscure. The golden tresses present fragments of their equations, deliberately partially hidden and requiring effort to observe. The most ancient of these is the work of Hypatia. You can also find the work of Ada Lovelace who created the first computer program. I included short fragments from Mary Jackson and Katherine Johnson, NASA mathematicians who invented orbital mechanics, as well as several others. My work is hinted at by three axes since I use a geometric representation. I largely followed the Roman guidelines for andamento while using primarily smalti as material. Specifically for the math, I used metallic watercolor on drawing paper, printed equations onto that using a laser printer, and adhered the paper to clear glass tesserae using jeweler's epoxy. The resulting tiles seamlessly blend with other mosaic materials. From a distance, this piece is very reminiscent of Roman art, while drawing the viewer in for a very modern insight on the challenges of being female.