July People of all ages invited to explore mathematical ideas through art

Visitors of all ages are invited to discover how creativity can bring mathematics to life at a major exhibition celebrating the connections between mathematics and art, alongside a free Family Day packed with hands-on activities at University of Galway.  

The Exhibition of Mathematical Art, Craft, and Design will be on display in the Bailey Allen Hall at University of Galway from the 5^th to 8^th August and is part of the international Bridges 2026 Conference on Mathematics and the Arts. 

The extensive artworks help to visualise different mathematical models and concepts while showing the deep connections of mathematics to art, music, architecture, and culture.  

Exhibits include:

• Handmade paper weaving showing how a simple weaving technique unfolds into complex geometric forms
• A 3D-printed skeleton holding laser-cut wooden pieces to illustrate a mathematical object that exists beyond familiar geometry
• Discovering what happens when the famous Telstar football is reassembled into a sphere stitched from 20 white hexagons and 12 black pentagons, rearranged in alternative configurations
• A painting on silk celebrating five geometric tilings from Spain's Alhambra Palace.

The exhibition features more than 200 original artworks by mathematicians, scientists and artists from all over the world, including Neal Bushaw, Amy Wendt, Dana Kolářová, Eleni Vamvakidi and Navah Langmeyer, whose work spans sculpture, quilting, painting, jewellery and digital design, reflecting the many ways mathematics can inspire artistic expression.

The full art exhibition catalogue and artist statements can be viewed at:  
https://gallery.bridgesmathart.org/exhibitions/bridges-2026-exhibition-of-mathematical-art  

Many of the exhibiting artists use craft forms that are beloved of Galway craftspeople, such as crochet, knitting, origami and metalwork. It includes a piece by University of Galway Lecturer Dr Rachel Quinlan which uses origami as a practical way for exploring discrete geometry and wallpaper classification. 

Bridges artists will be presenting hands-on activities for visitors at the Bridges Family Day on Saturday August 8th. The free Family Day will include 21 hands-on workshops related to mathematics and arts, a poetry reading, a short film festival and dance workshops in Áras na Mac Léinn.  

Visitors can interact with a Giant Pantograph drawing machine made from bike parts and everyday materials; create 2D and 3D origami geometric shapes; explore new musical worlds by playing software versions of non-standard piano keyboard; train your own AI to read numbers and learn about algorithms; and explore mathematical ideas using a card, needle and thread.

Details of the 21 workshops can be found at: https://www.bridgesmathart.org/b2026/bridges-2026-free-public-events/bridges-2026-family-day/.

Run by the Bridges Organisation in collaboration with local organisers, the conference brings together an interdisciplinary group of mathematicians, scientists, artists, educators, musicians, writers, computer scientists, sculptors, dancers, weavers and model builders. 

Local conference organiser, Dr Rachel Quinlan, School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences, University of Galway, said: “Having participated and exhibited at the Bridges conferences for several years, it is a big pleasure for me to bring Bridges to University of Galway this year. Bridges celebrates the power of the creative arts to express and communicate mathematical meaning, and the mathematics that is inherent in many widely practised forms of art and craft.”

A programme of research talks and paper presentations are part of the four-day conference as well as a mathematical fashion show that will take place on the evening of Friday August 7^th in the Bailey Allen Hall. 

International speakers include bestselling maths author and stand-up comedian Matt Parker and award-winning author Amy Alznauer.

George Hart, President of the Bridges Organisation, said: “The Bridges Conference is an annual meeting where several hundred people who love mathematics and the arts come together to share their ideas, show their work, and get a creativity recharge from similar-minded people. Galway and Ireland is the perfect place for this, with its strong culture of the arts, including music, literature, and dance, and its history of significant mathematicians.“

The Bridges Organisation oversees the annual Bridges conference on mathematical connections in art, music, architecture, and culture. Since 1998, Bridges has travelled to North America, Europe, and Asia, and has attracted participants from over thirty countries.  

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