A Hanging Kinetic Sculpture for a Cruise Ship

A HANGING KINETIC SCULPTURE FOR A CRUISE SHIP George Baker with Eric Peltzer, Art Department, Occidental College, 1600 Campus Road, Los Angeles, CA 90041, U.S.A. Received 23January 1990. Acceptedfor publication Uy RogerF. Malina. Suspended Forms (Fig. 1) is a stainless steel sculpture created for a recently completed cruise liner, the Star Princess. The work hangs from a domed ceiling down into the circular 'grand stairway', which is situated at one end of the ship's central threedeck atrium. The sculpture, like most of my work of the last 20 years, is kinetic, with five slowly rotating shapes that create a constantly changing composition according to a repeating la-min program. All of the sculpture's visible shapes are fabricated from T304 stainless steel. The 21-ft, 2,00a-lb work is suspended by a 3/8-in stainless steel cable. Eight additional 3/16-in cables anchor the sculpture to surrounding structural members to prevent lateral motion due to the ship's movements at sea (see Fig. 1). Recently, 1 have abandoned mechanical recycling cam-timers in favor of a computerized solid-state control. The device 1 now use consists of a bank of input signal terminals; a central processor with random access memory, which is programmable through a relay-logic type of computer language; a detachable programming keypad; and a bank of 10amp output relays [1]. With this type ofcontrol, it is possible to make use of feedback from the sculpture itself. In this case, there are metal-proximity sensors attached to the sculpture that are used to signal the controller when a moving shape has reached certain intended limits of movement. When signaled, the controller is programmed to interrupt power to that shape's motor until the timing program instructs the motor's reversal. ABST'RACTS As an additional motion-control feature, the direct-eurrent power supply for the shunt-wound motors allows adjustable acceleration and deceleration via ramping voltage control. The goal behind this relatively sophisticated kind of motion control, and of the entire composition, is to involve viewers in a contemplative visual event. The slowly moving shapes encourage the ship's passengers to pause and watch the composition slowly evolve. I seek to create active, living works that lead to an emotional interplay between observer, sculpture and environment . Through constantly changing compositions involving kinetic shapes, emerging shadow patterns and varying surface reflections, I strive to form a harmony between a work and its surroundings. Fig. 1. George Baker, Suspended Forms, stainless steel, 21 ft, 1988. This kinetic sculpture is suspended from the domed ceiling of the three-deck atrium of a cruise liner. I create works in a number of different idioms, including wind sculptures, electrically motorized wall reliefs, and fountains that move with water flow and wind. The common goal throughout imparts each work with a certain presence, with a life or an identity that is readily recognizable. The subject is simply beauty of form. In all of my sculptures forms are subconsciously abstracted from the environment [2]. Their movement is gentle, and attention is focused on the interaction of line, form and surface as layers of shapes move, are hidden and reappear. References and Notes I, The computerized system I use is a Model LSIOOO Sequential Programmable Control made by Minarik Electrical of Glendale, California. 2. See George Baker with Richard Andrews, "On the Objective, Design and Construction of My Kinetic Metal Sculptures", Leonardo 8, No.4, 273279 (1975).©19911SAST Pergamon Press pic.Printed inGreat Britain. 0024.Q94X/91 $3.00+0.00 LEONARDO, Vol. 24, No.4, pp. 483-485, 1991 483 ...