Multiplicity

by Tracy Paul-Rossman

36" Butterfly

Colorful, Diverse, 3-dimensional (multifaceted). Reflects diversity we see in nature and the natural world of color and patterns.

As with my 2022 butterfly (Mathmatica), my 2023 butterfly derives from the connection between mathematics and art and nature. Multiplicity (i.e., the number of times a member is repeated in a set or a multiset) reflects the repetition of patterns that we see in nature juxtaposed with the diversity of nature. The combination of repeating and divergent members of the set create an interesting 3D surface affect that the artist hopes will inspire viewers to recognize the importance of "being different" as it contributes to a greater community.

Metal sculptor Tracy Paul-Rossman has a deep appreciation for mathematics. She completed her graduate work at Arizona State University in a consortium of the university's physics, chemistry, and Earth science departments.
But she is equally passionate about art and nature and the ways that mathematics are infused into and subtly expressed by both. For the last 25 years welding metal sculpture as been a focus of Tracy's life.
She loves the calculus of fabrication and her background in chemistry delights in the patina of metal surfaces.
Tracy's current body of metal work includes desert flora and fauna in representational as well as in spiritual and mythical casts