Bloculus Prime

The newest addition to UAlbany's College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering ("CNSE") is Bloculus Prime, a massive piece of artwork that hangs in CNSE's NanoFab 300 North rotunda. The installation, which measures 18 feet by 9 feet by 15 feet, represents a star-shaped form of eight tomato-cage frames that are fastened together, radiating out from a spherical center.

Dr. Mayer and Gary Gold discuss the best angle to photograph Bloculus Prime.

Created by Dr. Edward Mayer, a professor of art and chair of the sculpture program at the University at Albany, Bloculus Prime has 90 basic modules that link up to produce a rectangular structure. As one views it from different vantage points, it reveals a variety of repetitive patterns of spheres, cones and diamonds that bear a curious similarity to the Kikuchi diffraction pattern seen under the scanning electron microscope, which is used to predict macroscopic behavior based on nanoscale parameters.

"My inspiration for Bloculus Prime derives from an interest in the changing potential and fragile, tenuous nature of all things," said Dr. Mayer. "The extremely low-tech process and familiar forms utilized in the execution of this sculpture hangs in strong contrast to the highly complex activities taking place at CNSE."

Dr. Mayer is a sculptor who lives and works in the Capital District. His primary focus for the past 25 years has been site-specific installations. His projects involve using simple, readily available materials to create complex constructions, which respond to and affect the environment in which they are presented.

To view more photos, click here.

To read news coverage on Bloculus Prime, click here.


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