Clare Donnison @DonnisonClare

Tom Crawford is an outlier of his trade; mathematician is written (more accurately, tattooed) all over him. As YouTube tutorials unfold, the surface area of his pale and lean body, is revealed, section by section – images in ink uncovered whilst he performs. As clothes are shed (commensurate with the degree of progress of his explanation), finally – the theorem is proven, the mathematician unclothed and left standing wearing only multi-coloured underpants. (Striptease + 1) – His learning outcome reached.

This naked mathematician, a one man exhibitionist wants to reach out to teenagers, to make maths relevant to life – and they cannot resist his appeal. A man in his prime, his dynamic and fluid presentations pays homage to his favourite (and branded) equation- that of Navier-Stokes. Even in lockdown, living on site next to his chalk board, the flow continues.

Poké Ball earrings adorned, the sides of his head shaved, the centre a ‘no mow’ of untidy wisplike growth, curved forelock flopping untidily between his blue eyes.

The tattoos plotted over time (growth rate e?) a body canvas with piercings and assimilated images, mathematical and cartoon. Greek symbols and notation, Butterfree and Platonic Solids. A walking retrospective, show his inability to keep his love of Maths and Pokémon to himself.

Was it early experimenting with a geometry set that led to his penchant for piercings, perhaps while grappling with pi he turned his pair of compasses on himself and liked the result?

What was the origin of his desire to illuminate his hide? Was he a school boy who scrawled on desks, gouged his initials (more likely the Pythagoras’ theorem) on trees – are todays results merely an extrapolation with permanent results?

Proof – Ʃ (his art work) = solution to the puzzle of Maths engagement