Science, Art and Geometrical Imagination

TL;DR

This paper explores the historical and conceptual relationship between science and art, emphasizing how geometric imagination has driven innovative representations of space from antiquity to modern cosmology.

Contribution

It analyzes works of artists and scientists to show how aesthetic principles like symmetry and tessellations underpin creative processes in both fields.

Findings

Geometric principles influence scientific and artistic creation.

Historical evolution of space representation reflects geometric imagination.

Aesthetic principles are fundamental to innovation in science and art.

Abstract

From the geocentric, closed world model of Antiquity to the wraparound universe models of relativistic cosmology, the parallel history of space representations in science and art illustrates the fundamental role of geometric imagination in innovative findings. Through the analysis of works of various artists and scientists like Plato, Durer, Kepler, Escher, Grisey or the present author, it is shown how the process of creation in science and in the arts rests on aesthetical principles such as symmetry, regular polyhedra, laws of harmonic proportion, tessellations, group theory, etc., as well as beauty, conciseness and emotional approach of the world.