Marion Drennen
Quantum Connections
- Title: Nine
- Size: 34” wide × 55” tall
- Medium: Acrylic on Board
In order to evoke the # 9, nine cats are stretched out around a spiral created using the Golden Section. The board is built to Golden Section dimensions, broken down into smaller and smaller parts:
- 34” × 55” board
- 34” × 34” square at the bottom
- 21” × 34” top section
- 21” × 21” top right square
- 13” × 21” top left section
- 13” × 13” top left square
- 8” × 13” section beneath that with
- 8” × 8” square and to the right of that
- 5” × 8” section with
- 5” × 5” square and then
- 3” × 5” section with
- 3” × 3” square and
- 2” × 3” section with
- (2) 1” × 1” squares
These numbers, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, and 55 form the beginning segment of are Fibonacci sequence, each of whose terms, starting with the third, may be obtained by adding the previous two. The successive ratios of the Fibonacci numbers, 1/1, 2/1, 3/2, 5/3, 8/5, 13/8, etc., form better and better approximations of the Golden Ratio φ. The Fibonacci Numbers measure the fraction of a turn between successive leaves on the stalk of a plant: 1/2 for elm and linden, 1/3 for beech and hazel, 2/5 for oak and apple, 3/8 for poplar and rose, 5/13 for willow and almond, etc. Words and Glyphs for the Number 9 are woven throughout the piece, with repetitions used to evoke the sense of patterns.