Escher and Coxeter - a Mathematical Conversation

  • Details
  • Text
  • Audio
  • Downloads
  • Extra Reading

The artist M.C. Escher’s work often used ingenious tilings of the plane with interlocking figures such as fish and birds. Although these tilings could in principle extend forever, Escher could not show this on a finite picture. But a diagram from a paper by the mathematician Donald Coxeter presented one solution to this conundrum. We will look at the mathematics of this diagram and how Escher used it. We will also see how Coxeter produced mathematical research based on aspects of Escher's work.

Download Text

This event was on Mon, 05 Jun 2017

Sarah Hart Professor of Geometry

Professor Sarah Hart

Professor of Geometry

Sarah Hart was the first woman Professor of Geometry at Gresham College, and Acting Provost between March and October 2025. She is also Professor Emerita of Mathematics at Birkbeck, University of London where she served as the Head of Mathematics and Statistics.

Find out more

Support Gresham

Gresham College has offered an outstanding education to the public free of charge for over 400 years. Today, Gresham College plays an important role in fostering a love of learning and a greater understanding of ourselves and the world around us. Your donation will help to widen our reach and to broaden our audience, allowing more people to benefit from a high-quality education from some of the brightest minds.