The Mathematician 1918

Curator: Diego Rivera's "The Mathematician," an oil painting created in 1918, presents us with a rather intriguing figure. It resides in the Dolores Olmedo Collection in Mexico City. Editor: My immediate reaction? The guy looks absolutely knackered. Utterly drained. And those intense calculations in the background, hovering like equations ready to drop...it’s as if the math is literally weighing him down. Curator: Rivera produced this work during a pivotal moment in his career, influenced by the cubist and post-impressionist styles percolating through Europe at the time. One can view the work as exploring the tension between scientific rationalism and the artist's emotional response to a world in upheaval. There’s this constant interplay, politically too, given the radical changes around the globe, mirroring the anxieties present in intellectual circles. Editor: The way Rivera's handled the light is fascinating—almost melancholic. He's trapped in his mind, yet vulnerable in plain sight. It's not the typical heroic depiction of a brilliant mind. Those geometric sketches behind him suggest there’s beauty in logic, or at least in the attempt. I almost feel as if he’s saying, “Give me numbers; tell me everything makes sense." A very romantic impulse! Curator: Well, the 'romantic' reading is interesting given that many were thinking about numbers and rationality at this point as an answer to increasing irrationality they perceived in society. One can consider this against the backdrop of early 20th century's increasing fervor for mathematical formalization, from Bertrand Russell to David Hilbert's work, where intellectuals thought it could give answers. The books there at the corner of the desk almost play the role of holy scripture... Editor: Perhaps it's all the things it symbolizes. What’s really striking about the Mathematician is how, through Rivera's technique, his almost sickly, gaunt portrait serves to humanize him and remind us of the strain and stress and even emotional turmoil, that academic pursuit might cause someone. I bet there’s an MFA student in here tonight who knows exactly that pain. Curator: I appreciate how viewing art gives one opportunity to consider science not just in the realm of its achievements, but as lived experience. I have to agree. The figure has stayed with me in many ways. Editor: Right, there is beauty even in apparent suffering and in a world of formulas, our hearts continue yearning for that which transcends definition.