The Crochet Coral Reef (CCR) is a project of the Institute For Figuring (IFF), a Los Angeles based non-profit whose mission is to engage publics with science and mathematics through material and aesthetic “play practices.”

The Crochet Coral Reef project results from years of intellectual research and development on the part of Institute directors, Margaret Wertheim and Christine Wertheim. Their efforts have created the nexus of mathematics, science, handicrafts, community art practice and environmental reflection that is itself the Reef project. If you would like to host exhibitions or programs of any kind based around the CCR you must seek permission from the IFF. While hyperbolic crochet is something to be learned and employed freely, the Reef project, with its complex interweaving of disciplines, is a product of the Wertheims’ innovations in science+art practice, and is protected.

Material published on this site is protected. These materials may only be used with written permission.

The Institute For Figuring is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization based in Los Angeles.

Exhibiting the Crochet Reef

If you wish to exhibit the IFF’s Core Collection of crochet reefs – in whole or in part – please send us a formal request.

There is a Loan Agreement we require exhibition venues to sign. See here for information on exhibiting the Crochet Reef.

Start a Satellite Reef

If you wish to start a Satellite Reef, or exhibit an existing Satellite Reef, you must seek permission from the IFF before you begin. We have a formal Partnership Agreement we require all Satellite Reef organizers to sign which outlines the framing of your local reef within the context of the global Crochet Coral Reef project. This Partnership Agreement formalizes your rights and responsibilities, and details the support provided by the IFF to assist in realizing the best possible results for your community.

See here for information on how to start a Satellite Reef.