BILL RALPH
A Mathematician Breathes
JUNE 23 TO JULY 17, 2010
OPENING RECEPTION:
Saturday, July 3, 2 - 5 PM
Review by ArtListPro
Bill Ralph writes unique computer programs to create abstract videos and digital work that are windows into mathematical worlds he constructs. At the heart of his show is algorithm 031-073 that he designed to show the intimate connection between art and mathematics. He asks us to think of this algorithm as a single work of art that we experience indirectly and imperfectly through a handful of the infinity of works it can create.
The computer code he has shaped over the last fifteen years contains sections that define the colour, form and texture of each piece. What drives his process is the extraordinary and often chaotic mathematical behaviour of systems built on the iterated function sequence xn+1 = f ( xn ) where f is a function carefully constructed for its mathematical and artistic interest. His work offers a visual connection to the enormous complexity and unity that lies within the rich mathematical objects that inspire his images. The artist says that making art this way is like creating a sculpture from a pile of leaves by blowing on them.
