Golden Fear
The word fear is substituted in place of the number one in this continued fraction equation that defines the aesthetically popular golden ratio. The golden ratio has always been associated with sublime mathematical beauty however; in this mathematical application its sublimity is conflated with the dark force of fear.

 

 

Americana Mathematics
This work uses provincial aesthetics from Americana to point at the complexities of studying the difference between multiplication and addition when using visual concepts. The separate visual concepts are easily detached from each other when adding yet, when multiplied they augment each other to form an integrated idea of much greater magnitude.

 

 

Peano’s String, A History of Spiritual Stories
This work uses the 1889 axiomatic system created by Giuseppe Peano as a mathematical structure in which logically consistent metaphors are substituted for the original concepts.  The axioms are then transformed into a poetic structure that is “mapped across’’ to the culturally pervasive spiritual stories of the Levant.  

 

 

Temptation
This work uses a visual and mathematical conflation to question the idea of temptation. The mathematics can be translated to say that temptation gets exponentially stronger as you approach an object of desire and at the moment you touch it, the mathematical equation blows up to infinity.

 

 

The Empty Paradox
The equation is read “Compassion multiplied by Wisdom is equal to 1 divided by X as the limit of X approaches Buddha’s mind (Chinese). Buddhist dharma tells us that Buddha’s mind is emptiness yet paradoxically different from nothingness or zero. Here as one approaches Buddha’s mind compassion and wisdom approach infinity.

 

 

Centered
This work is a visual and mathematical conflation, pointing to the spiritual idea of “Centered”. The mathematical expression is of a four-dimensional point which lies exactly in the middle of all the dimensions.  The four spatial dimensions are expressed as North South, East West, Up Down, and Inward Outward.

 

 

 

The Gift of San Shin
This is a proportional poem in the form of ‘a’ is to ‘b’ as ‘c’ is to ‘d’. In English this poem can be translated to say two things simultaneously. 1.) Wisdom is to the Wind as Adversity is to the Cage and 2.) Wisdom is to Adversity as the Wind is to the Cage.

 

 

Beginners Mind
The equation is the perfect expression of a circle or can be textually considered the number zero. The calligraphic Zen circle, also perfect, expresses emptiness. Thus, perfection of form is expressed, one being denotation and the other connotation.  The pattern of Chinese symbols expresses the Zen idea of “Beginners Mind”.