Applying Math to Visual Arts

Tamaya Crainsth is using an unexpected tool to create art: her brain. And just her brain. After putting on headsets, Tamaya and her fifth-grade peers used Braintone Art – a technology that translates human brainwaves into digital studio art – to produce abstract images and symmetrical on-screen inkblots, like when paint is dropped on a piece of paper and then folded in half.

After seven years of focusing on traditional STEM applications, the program evolved to include visual arts (expanding STEM to STEAM), with the goal of highlighting the myriad ways math and technology can be applied to create art. The Braintone Art sessions carried the bonus of emphasizing focus and concentration by showing students what they can accomplish when they channel their brain power – quite literally – to create something new. 

“When I get distracted, I feel frustrated, but the Braintone Art activity showed me how to clear my mind so I can understand, focus, stay motivated and be happy,” said Tamaya. 

Capital One’s Math Corps partnership teaches program participants like Tamaya how to pursue their passions in an ever-evolving digital world.

“It’s about all the different aspects of technology,” said Hilary Jackson, Chief Innovation Officer for Capital One’s Financial Services division. “What you can create, versus just how technology can help you do things better and faster.”