Mathematics and Art in Africa

Many motifs in African decorative traditions display very distinctive order. Mathematics provides an effective language for describing this order. This two-way relationship is the basis for a course I’m currently teaching at AIMS. I will describe what we do in the course and also discuss some other directions that could be pursued. We will look at several examples, including Ndebele house decorations, basketry from southern Mozambique, Chokwe sona drawings, and Ghanaian Adinkrasymbols.