The recommendation to find a criterion of simplicity in mathematics, Hilbert's (recently discovered) 24th question on his renowned list of open problems given at the meeting of the International Congress of Mathematics in Paris in 1900, places the aesthetic of simplicity at the heart of mathematical practice. At the same time, simplicity and economy of means are powerful impulses in the creation of architecture and artworks. The conference and this volume represents an attempt to probe the mathematical aspects of the phenomenon of simplicity, in the context of an attitude which sees the aesthetic of simplicity as an irreducible part of the core practice of mathematics and the making of artworks. In the scientific context for example, the main question appears to be this one: is simplicity (or aesthetic value generally) truth conducive? While at the same time we consider the question, how do simplicity and economy of means function in various artistic practices? That said, this project has a much wider scope-it is an attempt to build a bridge across the cultures of art and mathematics, through one of their most powerful connectors: simplicity.

Roman Kossak's research is in model theory of nonstandard models of formal arithmetic. For over 30 years he has worked at the City University of New York, where he teaches developmental courses at Bronx Community College and mathematical logic and model theory at the Graduate Center. His other interests include phenomenology and interactions between mathematics and the arts. Philip Ording is a member of the mathematics faculty at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York. He received a PhD in Mathematics from Columbia University in 2006. While a graduate student of topology and geometry he began working as a mathematics consultant in art and architecture studios in New York. Since then he has published essays, curated exhibitions, and lectured on the intersection of mathematics and the arts.