Activism, free speech and New College

On Thursday, I gave a talk with Anne-Marie Russell, the executive director of Ringling College’s Museum of Modern Art, entitled “Art, Math and Orange Peels: The Legacy of Dr. William Thurston on Math and Fashion.” The talk examined the link between art, mathematics, and science by examining the work of Bill Thurston, a 1967 graduate of New College, and his interaction with Dai Fujiwara, creative director of the fashion house Issey Miyake. Thurston revolutionized 20th century geometry and topology by thinking fearlessly and deeply about the simplest questions, the sort that a curious child would ask.