Botanic Mathematica
A textile taxonomy of mathematical plant forms.
Botanica Mathematica is a collaboration between myself and Dr Julia Collins with assistance from Jo McRae and many, many knitters around the world. Julia and I started the project 2013 by designing knitting patterns using simple algorithms for growth which generated plant like forms. We took the project to science festivals in Scotland for hands on workshops and to meet the knitters locally. We published the patterns online and invited knitters to show us the results of their work. What came back astounded us. Creativity, insight and enthusiasm were abundant. The collection topped out a seventy five specimens of Binary Bonsai, much Hyperbolic Kelp and many Hyperbolic Chantrelles all showing traits and variations we never anticipated. We enlisted Jo as our taxonomist to make sense of it all. A family tree with genus and species names for all the Binary Bonsai was drawn up. The final collection and taxonomy were exhibited in 2017 at the Darcy Thompson Museum in the University of Dundee as part of the celebration of the centenary of Thompson's major work on mathmematical biology.
Here you'll see a selection of photos of the sort of thing we collected in our woolly herbarium. The project has its own blog website where you can find the story as it happened and all the patterns for making your own specimens. Botanica Mathematica blog
Botanica Mathematica is available for exhibitions and workshops. Please contact me if you are interested in hosting it.
Botanica Mathematica is a collaboration between myself and Dr Julia Collins with assistance from Jo McRae and many, many knitters around the world. Julia and I started the project 2013 by designing knitting patterns using simple algorithms for growth which generated plant like forms. We took the project to science festivals in Scotland for hands on workshops and to meet the knitters locally. We published the patterns online and invited knitters to show us the results of their work. What came back astounded us. Creativity, insight and enthusiasm were abundant. The collection topped out a seventy five specimens of Binary Bonsai, much Hyperbolic Kelp and many Hyperbolic Chantrelles all showing traits and variations we never anticipated. We enlisted Jo as our taxonomist to make sense of it all. A family tree with genus and species names for all the Binary Bonsai was drawn up. The final collection and taxonomy were exhibited in 2017 at the Darcy Thompson Museum in the University of Dundee as part of the celebration of the centenary of Thompson's major work on mathmematical biology.
Here you'll see a selection of photos of the sort of thing we collected in our woolly herbarium. The project has its own blog website where you can find the story as it happened and all the patterns for making your own specimens. Botanica Mathematica blog
Botanica Mathematica is available for exhibitions and workshops. Please contact me if you are interested in hosting it.
