Crucible
Object NameSculpture and Terrazzo Floor
Artist / Maker
Brower Hatcher
(American, b. 1942)
Date2005
MediumA) Iron, stainless steel, glass, concrete and light, terrazzo
B) terrazzo floor
Dimensions204 x 40 x 40 in. (518.2 x 101.6 x 101.6 cm)
ClassificationsSculpture
Credit LineAn Iowa Art in State Buildings Project for the Environmental Health and Safety Building. In the Art on Campus Collection, University Museums, Iowa State University.
Object numberU2005.300ab
Status
On viewCollections
CultureAmerican
Label TextFrom the University Museums Collections Handbook, vol. 2, 2025:
Illustrating the work performed by the University’s Environmental Health and Safety personnel, this metal sculpture depicts an ever-burning flame, altering the chemical compositions of harmful substances into a safer state. Points of connection and intersecting nodes attach metal together to build the structure of a flame. Housed in a stainless-steel bowl and lit from within, the sculpture emerges from a crucible of its own, where elements interact and transform with heat. The intersecting nodes and chemical references are familiar to Environmental Health and Safety personnel, as they work together to keep those at Iowa State University safe from harm.
Artist Brower Hatcher, founder of Mid-Ocean Studio, Providence, Rhode Island, is known for large site-specific works of public art, and creates “cellular matrixes” of layered metal frameworks. Hatcher has completed over fifty works of public sculpture across the United States, often incorporating cultural symbols into the interwoven metal frame of his designs. Light is often an element of his sculpture, ensuring the installation is visually active at night, changing according to the environment around the sculpture.
PeriodContemporary
Locations
- (not entered) Iowa State University, Enviromental Health and Safety
