Shiying Dong is a pioneering fiber artist merging mathematics and art through abstract sculpture. With a PhD in theoretical physics and an MA in mathematics, Shiying developed Topological Crochet, a groundbreaking style translating algebraic topology concepts into yarn. This innovative approach unlocks artistic freedom, enabling creators to craft complex forms previously challenging to achieve with traditional methods.

As an educator, Shiying teaches online workshops at the National Museum of Mathematics and has led sessions at the Bridges math art conferences. Shiying shares her techniques on YouTube (@epimono) and is co-authoring Unravelling Topological Crochet with math artist Eve Torrence.

Shiying’s work has been showcased at Bridges and the Joint Mathematical Meetings. Together with David Press, she has a show, Emergent Surfaces: Studies in Tension, in the gallery of MoMath on Fifth Avenue from March to June 2025. She was one of the featured artists in Vogue Knitting Live 2025. Her piece, Saddle Monster, shown in this exhibition, was the winner of the Best Textile, Sculpture, or Other Medium award in the JMM 2025 Mathematical Art Exhibition. Expanding her creative horizons, Shiying also enjoys laser cutting, becoming one of the two winners of the prestigious 2023 Einstein Mad Hat Award Grand Prize. As a teenager, she won a Silver Medal in the first Asian Physics Olympiad.