''Needle Tower'' is a public artwork by American sculptor

Kenneth Snelson Kenneth Duane Snelson (June 29, 1927 – December 22, 2016) was an American contemporary sculptor and photographer. His sculptural works are composed of flexible and rigid components arranged according to the idea of 'tensegrity'. Snelson prefer ...

located outside of the

Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden is an art museum beside the National Mall, in Washington, D.C., the United States. The museum was initially endowed during the 1960s with the permanent art collection of Joseph H. Hirshhorn. It was desi ...

in Washington, D.C.,

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

Description

This 26,5 meter tall abstract sculpture is a tapering tower made of

aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It h ...

and stainless steel. The aluminum tubes act in compression, held in tension by the stainless steel cables threaded through in the ends of the tubes.''A Garden for Art'', Valerie J. Fletcher, LOC # 97-61991, p.85

Acquisition

The piece was a gift of Joseph Hirshhorn in 1974.

Tensegrity

Snelson's unique sculpture style is well articulated in ''Needle Tower''. The structure style displayed is known as "

tensegrity Tensegrity, tensional integrity or floating compression is a structural principle based on a system of isolated components under compression inside a network of continuous tension, and arranged in such a way that the compressed members (usual ...

," a description given by Snelson's former professor

Buckminster Fuller Richard Buckminster Fuller (; July 12, 1895 – July 1, 1983) was an American architect, systems theorist, writer, designer, inventor, philosopher, and futurist. He styled his name as R. Buckminster Fuller in his writings, publishing m ...

to the melding of tension and structural integrity. According to Snelson:

Tensegrity describes a closed structural system composed of a set of three or more elongate compression struts within a network of tension tendons, the combined parts mutually supportive in such a way that the struts do not touch one another, but press outwardly against nodal points in the tension network to form a firm, triangulated, prestressed, tension and compression unit.

Symbolism

Much has been said about the geometric shapes seen in Snelson's works. Looking up from the inside of ''Needle Tower'' one may see the

Star of David The Star of David (). is a generally recognized symbol of both Jewish identity and Judaism. Its shape is that of a hexagram: the compound of two equilateral triangles. A derivation of the '' seal of Solomon'', which was used for decorat ...

. According to Snelson, his works are not symbolic and it's common to see six-pointed stars in his work. In ''Needle Tower'' the six pointedness comes from the natural geometry of the three compression struts that make up each layer. Sets of three alternate with left and right

helical Helical may refer to: * Helix A helix () is a shape like a corkscrew or spiral staircase. It is a type of smooth space curve with tangent lines at a constant angle to a fixed axis. Helices are important in biology, as the DNA molecule is ...

modules, adding up to six when viewed upwards from the base of the tower.

Conservation

In April 2010 conservation work was completed on the sculpture by the Hirshhorn Museum. It took 15 staff members to stand the tower upright after conservation completion.

''Needle Tower II''

A second ''Needle Tower'', ''Needle Tower II'', was completed in 1968 and was acquired by the

Kröller-Müller Museum The Kröller-Müller Museum () is a national art museum and sculpture garden, located in the Hoge Veluwe National Park in Otterlo in the Netherlands. The museum, founded by art collector Helene Kröller-Müller within the extensive grounds of ...

in 1971. The piece resides in the museum's sculpture garden.''Acquisitions of Modern Art by Museums: Supplement''. The Burlington Magazine Publications, Ltd., Feb. 1971, p 119.

Gallery

File:Needle Tower Detail.jpg, Detail File:Needle Tower Label.jpg, Label

References

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External links

Curious Skeletons by NASAHirshhorn's collection entryWaymarking Entry for ''Needle Tower''
Modernist sculpture 1968 sculptures Helices Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Sculptures of the Smithsonian Institution Abstract sculptures in Washington, D.C. Aluminum sculptures in Washington, D.C. Outdoor sculptures in Washington, D.C. Star symbols