Jonathan Wolfe, Ph. D., Board President, founder of the Fractal Foundation
Jonathan Wolfe, Ph.D. is the Founder and Executive Director of the Fractal Foundation, a New Mexico nonprofit that uses the beauty of fractals to inspire interest in science, math and art.
With a scientific background in visual neurophysiology, and an international reputation as the artist behind the flying fractal hot air balloons, Dr. Wolfe is ideally situated to promote both the beauty and the intellectual impact of fractals. He has flown his unique art works at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta since 2001. During that period, he has taught over 60,000 children and over 600 teachers about fractals, and he is the creator of the extremely popular First Friday Fractals show at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science.
He currently serves as IT Director for UNM’s Project ECHO, a rapidly growing worldwide educational social network whose purpose is to democratize knowledge, empowering people in remote and underserved areas to positively impact their communities.
In addition to lecturing and teaching diverse audiences about the concepts of Chaos Theory and fractals, Dr.Wolfe is also a renowned artist best known for creating several fabulous fractal-inspired flying artworks (which can be seen at SkyDyes!) Ballooning is inherently an exercise in Chaos Theory, and Dr. Wolfe loves sharing the art and science of ballooning with audiences everywhere. By grasping the chaotic dynamics of the atmosphere, he can successfully navigate to a goal. By creating the world’s largest fractal images and printing them on balloon fabric, the Fractal Foundation can reach an audience of millions, educating and inspiring them about the possibilities of blending
science, math, art and technology.
