Mathematician Attempts Art - Numberphile

[00:00] Hey everyone, we have a number file video with a difference today, because Hannah Fry, who I'm sure you know from number file videos, has had a portrait painted that is now hanging at the Royal Society in London, which is kind of a big deal.

[00:13] I've made it you guys. You have made it. I've made it. I've made it from number file to this. I mean this is my career, right here. No, no, it's in the very beginning. I feel a little bit slighted by that. You found me.

[00:25] You don't think number file is the peak. You're right. You're right. I mean chronologically. It is a very big deal. Holly Woodhanna Fry has dain't to join us again here on number file to show us her painting.

[00:38] Thank you very much. The painting was created by another superstar of TV, Chloe Buzz. What was it called as a sky portrait artist? That is creative. There's this great TV show that everyone except me in England watches where they choose the best artist in the country.

[00:56] Chloe won it and her prize was getting to create this masterpiece here at the Royal Society. Now we've made a whole video about it on another channel called Objectivity. You can hear Chloe talk all about it. You can hear Hannah talk about it.

[01:08] So go and have a watch. There will be links down below. But for number file because we like the brown paper and we like seeing Hannah on the brown paper. I've decided to set a challenge. It's not mathematical. I'm sorry. There's no math today.

[01:20] I have challenged Hannah to do her own portrait of Chloe. I'm turning the tables. This is not going to be good. I don't know. I've never seen your artwork.

[01:33] Your math papers are always quite tidy. You're right. I spend great effort with a fountain pen writing beautiful equations. That's absolutely true.

[01:45] I don't think it translates to portraits. I'm going to be honest with you. Let's find out. Chloe, you up for this? Have you ever seen Hannah draw or paint or anything? No, no, no. It could be like a hidden castle. You know, great point.

[01:57] I should go for the castle style. I'm going to start with a style you like. Come on, let's do this. Chloe, if you want. Thank you. Hannah, you've got the number file sharpies. I've got the number file sharpies. Right. I'm going to do it like they do in school.

[02:09] I mean, it's basically curvature of three dimensional surfaces. Isn't it really? It is. It is. Yeah. And then just light on it. And then you do it in the middle, don't you? Because the eyes are like surprisingly far down, aren't they?

[02:21] It's just like the background bit. Are you asking Chloe for help here? Are you cheating? I've done it bad so far. No. I'm not sure how to do something. Give me your hair. Just give me a lot of hair. Okay, well, do the hair in black. That's going to be all right.

[02:33] Chloe, were you a good artist when you were young? Like, if I had gone back in a time machine and met you as a girl, would you have already been the girl who was good at drawing and painting and things? I was drawing. I was definitely, I was definitely doing it. Whether I was good is probably subjective.

[02:45] But is there? I was just kept doing it. Yeah, I just loved it. My own little world was just like making things. That's fun. And what are your attitudes to mathematics and math? And have you learnt any more as a result of working with Hannah?

[02:57] Yeah, we don't really talk math. Do we talk math? Oh, I barely have a conversation without it. I just try and sneak it in when you're not looking. Actually, I did math at A levels at school. I actually really do math.

[03:09] I like the problem solving and yeah, there's probably my second favorite subject. Nice. Yeah. So you're doing the hair before any other facial fit? Of course I am. It's the width. I'm starting with the easy stuff. I can't even brush my hair in front of my eyes to get vividly.

[03:23] An emo. Yeah. Just to do the whole thing. Like step after and throw in. Let me ask, do you do to message this morning about jumpers? We didn't. This is actually completely accidental. Yeah.

[03:35] But we apparently have synchronized which I'm frankly quite proud of. I actually have a black and white Czech shirt like that that I was going to wear as well. No. I was so close but I went for this one instead. That would have been amazing. That would have been amazing.

[03:47] It would have been crazy. Okay. If you could say still please. Okay. I mean, I was sort of joking about the curvature of different surfaces. But it's sort of this isn't it? Because one thing that I've noticed with your portraits.

[04:01] Oh god, I'm so scared. This is, I mean, this is dual dye now. The hair you can rescue that once you commit to the eyes with a sharpie. Okay. So one thing that I've noticed that you do is that you sort of focus on the shadow.

[04:15] So you're not like outlining things. It's more like you follow this kind of block of a shadow. If I go down there with your nose on the shadows that are terrible idea. No. No. No.

[04:27] So you sort of go like this. It's like this. Oh god. This is the worst thing I've ever been able to do on my entire life.

[04:41] Thank you. Okay. So do you see like down the nose? There's like a straight line of shadow where it's like the curvature of the nose. I see that. Right. Okay.

[04:53] So I think that's what she does. That's what, when I've seen you working, that's kind of what you do. It's like you, you sort of start in with the shadow. And then you've got like a dark bit there. It kind of goes like that.

[05:05] Right. And then on the eye, this bit's quite bright and on. My advice is kind of commit to the messiness. Because I always think people know what they're doing when they do it like this. Right. You're actually right. Where's your mouth?

[05:17] There's like quite a hard line there. And then, hang on. Chloe, have you had many portraits done of you? You probably have, I guess, in art classes and things like that. I think I have one that I sat for not the long ago.

[05:31] Just a little exercise. But it was, yeah. That's okay. It's quite therapeutic. What? Sitting. Yeah. For a while. Oh, do you? God, you're welcome to jump in at any time.

[05:43] Chloe, when you're walking around, the streets of London and that, and there's just like all these faces going past you, are you always thinking, how would I paint that one? How would I sketch that one? How would I, do you do that? Or do you kind of switch off when you're being a normal person?

[05:56] No. I do see like good faces to paint. And I'm always like... Oh, something. ...of another's to paint. Yeah. There's some kind of like really good character for like... I didn't have to describe it often. You have a good face to paint.

[06:10] She's just saying that. What is it that makes him... Here's a good face to paint. Good lines. Massive those. Prominent those. Prominent. Do you know what? That's looking pretty good.

[06:22] You're being ridiculous. It kind of has a thing to it. It doesn't look anything like her. I'm committing. I'm committing. I'm going to do more hair. I like that already.

[06:34] Oh, I think that's a bit too high up. I think it's a bit more like... ...there. And then this is like... Oh, she's got nice little curve going on, isn't she? Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, okay.

[06:46] Yep. Just swing down past the high. I think that my colouring here requires work. Whatever. Braiding. Next time you ask me for a favour.

[06:58] Well. Would you have rather done a math video? Yeah. Yeah, I'd be. The view is probably would have preferred that too. Factor 4,000. There we go. Right, can I make this maths score in any way?

[07:10] Yeah, go on then. Come on. Give us something. How can you make it maths score? Some kind of a quite... You can give us a guess of Gaussian curve to go on here that I can talk about. Right. And then there's a bit of stuff going on here.

[07:22] A bit of a shadow there. There you go. It's you. Don't overcook her. Don't overcook her. Hang on your chin's much nicer than that. Also, I think I did your lips up too high, but that's fine.

[07:36] There you go. Done. Done. Last piece. Sign up. Do you like how... Take responsibility for what you've made. Send help.

[07:49] Let's have a look. I do like it. It's complete. Special bonus. Keith Moore, head librarian at the Royal Society.

[08:02] Come on over for a second, Keith. Keith decides what hangs on the walls of the Royal Society. What do we say? Would that get flagged? Would you put that one up? Well, I think the Turner Prize Committee can stand down for just a moment.

[08:16] Would we hang it? No. Sorry, Hannah. I think it belongs in a bin. This is going straight to the Harron Museum. Yeah. I have a storage unit full of brown papers and this is going to join it.

[08:29] It's going to be like the arc of the covenant hiding away amongst the paper. Otherwise known as blackmail material. Do you know what? I think it's really good. It's 20 times better than anything I could do. I really actually like it.

[08:41] Thank you. Are you next? Is that why you're the second piece? You don't know. You don't know. There we go. Thank you very much, Hannah. No, no. Thank you. Thank you, Chloe. Go and check out the Objectivity video all about this one here.

[08:55] This is the one that you really want to find out about. But you saw this one get made as well. All right. Good. Thanks, Brady. All right. Did you do the job?

[09:08] I did the job. We'll let the internet comments just in the show. Do you humiliate all your friends on camera, Brady? Yes. I do, actually. That's pretty much. That's pretty much what I do. That's my thing.

[09:21] Okay. Yeah, so come this big secret. Okay. And surprise at the very end. And what was it like working with Hannah on this? She was great. She was really, really fun. Really? Because I find her a bit difficult sometimes.

[09:33] Look who's standing over here. Difficult to work with. You know it's true. I know. You are a pleasure to work here. I can imagine you guys had a massive laugh while you were doing this.

[09:45] Indeed. We did. We did.