© 2011 Chances Art (CA)
CA is a Division of
Powers of 2 Productions
  Chances Art
www.powersof2.ca/ca

Microsoft Corporation & Silverfrost Ltd. are sponsors of the Chances Art software project, now well underway, that will produce the new code required to create very large scale, high resolution murals, as well as the color plates for a book showcasing the artist's work.
 

Welcome

These original prints and commissioned murals spring directly from the new field of experimental computer-based mathematics and are inspired by the science, technology and equations that are an integral part of the foundation of Western Civilization.

All pieces, regardless of size, are characterized by photo-realistic detail and exuberant color. Each image is generated in its entirety by a single mathematical expression. Ever since Newton's day, science has found ever-increasing evidence that the universe is governed by mathematical laws that are expressed with extraordinary precision. These images are taken from an exploration of the endless variety of never before seen or suspected geometrical forms and complexity embedded in all such non-linear mathematical expressions.

Since the particular non-linear equations used to generate these images are taken from science and engineering, Ken's art is therefore telling us something about the hidden complexity and structure that mathematics imposes on the universe. To put it another way, these images offer tantalizing hints about the mathematical constraints imposed on the gods themselves with respect to their freedom to determine the working form of the laws of nature.

The artist sees in his work a manifestation of the mathematician Gregory Chaitin's claim that "perhaps mathematics and physics are not as different as most people think." And more poetically from Chaitin: "...mathematics is not a machine. Creativity is essential. And it is also mysterious. ... Look at Ramanujan's remark that a goddess brought him ideas while he slept, and that no equation is worthwhile unless it expresses one of God's thoughts." Given the close relationship of mathematics and physics, these words of the Nobel Laureate Frank Wilczek also apply if we substitute 'Mathematics' for 'Nature': "...getting genuine answers requires patience and humility before the facts. The best way to address the big ultimate questions is likely to be through dialogue with Nature. We must pose pointed sub-questions that give Nature a chance to respond with meaningful answers, in particular with answers that might surprise us." And indeed, the fact that this art's endless richness, complexity and diversity all unfold algorithmically and deterministically from compact mathematical expressions, never fails to surprise its discoverer!

The puzzle that these images present to the knowledgeable viewer was perfectly expressed by the physicist Heinrich Hertz: "One cannot escape the feeling that these mathematical formulae have an independent existence and an intelligence of their own, that they are wiser than we are, wiser even than their discoverers, that we get more out of them than was originally put into them." And Frank Wilczek adds that "...our equations - and more generally our concepts - are not just our products but also our teachers."


This site works best in Opera, since none of the other popular browsers implements as complete a set of HTML behaviours. The lack of a tight standard for HTML & CSS is a major annoyance. Satisfactory small-screen browser behaviour for PDAs and cell phones is currently being ignored, given the inherent difficulty of viewing art on a tiny screen.