Abstract:
In geometry, 'strange attractors' are complicated sets of fractal structures within which trajectories appear to randomly move about. These relationships are close, even if disturbed. Figuratively then, strange attractors suggest complexity and apparent disorder out of which creativity and innovation emerge. This aptly characterises this discussion's main protagonists: Augustus Earle -1793-1838) and Charles Darwin (1809-82). A maverick painter, Earle was the most widely travelled artist of his generation, while Darwin during the period that this paper focuses on was a young, unknown naturalist.
