Science Meets Art with Radiation-Themed Sculpture Contest
04/22/2024
By Brooke Coupal
“Pinanski Hall has this awesome hermit crab on the backside of the building (facing VFW Highway), but then on the other side where people walk by, it’s just the plain building,” Snay says. “I wondered, ‘How do we make the building more approachable and inviting?’”
Oda’s class visited Pinanski Hall and the Radiation Lab in mid-March to draw inspiration for their sculpture proposals. For studio art junior Kegan Smith, seeing the lab sparked his creativity.
“There were a lot of elements that the group had taken from that tour,” the Mansfield, Massachusetts, native says. “I wandered with a sketchbook, and every time I saw something interesting, I would try to draw it as quickly as I could.”
As Smith looked around, the spare control blades for the reactor captured his attention. Working with fellow studio art majors Nicole Ekstrom and Cassandra Donnelly, the students included control blades in their scaled-down sculpture model. They proposed that three control blades (constructed of concrete or stainless steel) stick out of the grass in front of Pinanski Hall with a large sustainable and weather-proof net connecting the blades to the building. The net would be multi-colored to represent the colors of the first atomic rock and thermal energy, which the students read about on posters during the tour.
“We wanted to show visually that radiation can have this beautiful essence,” says Ekstrom, who is from Wilmington, Massachusetts.
“We had negative connotations in mind when thinking about radioactivity, so to be able to see it in person and see the type of work they’re doing, it’s really inspiring,” the Dracut, Massachusetts, resident says. “To be able to have the opportunity to create a place where art and science can intersect was also inspiring. I don’t think we would have been able to accomplish that without seeing the space itself.”
Sam Poole, a studio art senior from Hudson, New Hampshire, drew inspiration from the cancer-related research conducted within Pinanski Hall. She proposed a sculpture that features blue cancer cells affixed to the building. The cells diminish in size as they go down the building, representing how radiation can help treat cancer.
“They offered wonderful feedback on the sculpture, and we talked about plans for the grounds on North Campus,” says Cormier, who is now coming up with alternative sculpture designs based on the feedback. She plans to present those new designs to the dean’s office within the next two months.
“It’s been an incredible learning experience,” she adds.
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