A mural inspired by Maryam Mirzakhani’s mathematics at the CIRM
On 30 September 2026, the International Centre for Mathematical Meetings (CIRM) unveiled a mural inspired by the mathematical worlds of Maryam Mirzakhani, created during a residency by three recent graduates of the École des Beaux-Arts.
The mural is located in the Cirm’s ‘village square’. This central space connects the bastide, the restaurant, the library and one of the centre’s lecture theatres. It is a thoroughfare: researchers and staff, as well as visitors, pass through it throughout the day. The artwork covers two walls and extends onto part of the floor. It is therefore visible to everyone.
Maryam Mirzakhani revolutionised an entire branch of geometry, bringing new ideas to light by piecing together – like a jigsaw puzzle – mathematical elements that seemed unrelated. Maryam Mirzakhani was awarded the Fields Medal in 2014, becoming the first female mathematician to receive one of the two most prestigious awards in the discipline. She passed away in 2017.
Maryam Mirzakhani and the CIRM
In 2009, the CIRM organised a conference entitled “Dynamics and Geometry in Teichmüller Space”, the second major event bringing together this mathematical community in the presence of Maryam Mirzakhani; the first event had taken place in 2003, but she had been unable to obtain a visa.
In 2023, to mark the tenth anniversary of the Jean-Morlet Chair, CIRM organised two exhibitions in tribute to her mathematical work: “The Mathematical Worlds of Maryam Mirzakhani”, under the scientific direction of Anton Zorich, and “Spaces of Form”, curated by Jayadev Athreya.
To extend this spotlight, the Cirm is once again reaching out to the Beaux-Arts de Marseille, a member institution of Campus Art Méditerranée with which it had previously collaborated in 2021 on the artwork Pavages, installed in front of the restaurant. The school is launching a call for proposals aimed at its recent graduates, who are invited to design a mural inspired by Maryam Mirzakhani’s mathematics and her approach to her work.
Aurélie Arzoine Lafages, Saliha Hamlaoui and Célie Miloch, who graduated from the Beaux-Arts in 2025, responded to this call and were selected for their project. The two-week artist residency took place in June 2026.
Mathematical thought becomes visible
“Maryam Mirzakhani’s work is embodied in the drawings that particularly caught our attention,” explain the three artists. “She filled her notebooks with lines, networks, curves and distorted surfaces, which she drew continuously to understand the internal logic of the objects she was studying.”
For the artists, “His lines create autonomous graphic spaces, where mathematical thought becomes visible. We based our work on shapes taken from his sketchbooks. Cut out like sewing patterns, these geometric shapes served as a template for composing the surface of the walls. The paint was applied, sprayed diffusely onto our stencils, which were successively moved and superimposed, revealing the shapes layer by layer. We conceived this mural as a visual translation of the gestures that run through Maryam Mirzakhani’s thinking.
Her thinking invites us to understand the world as a collection of curves, pathways, interconnections and complexities that carry meaning. Her work explores the dynamics of movement, the way in which forms transform, and the deep connections that unite seemingly independent structures. Intuitive and visionary, her approach transforms geometry into a living landscape. She shows us the world as a system of balances, flows and relationships. The mural draws inspiration from this way of thinking: a space where patterns, networks, flows and colours unfold as a metaphor for movement”.
