"The presence of light is the most fundamental connecting force of the universe." – Steven Holl, Parallax, 2000
Obolin was named by Steven Holl's four-year-old daughter Io Helene, who, when asked what Obolin means, replied: "it means exactly what you want it to mean."
Three cutouts subtracted from spherical geometry mark the exact location of the sun's vector based on its Hudson Valley location at noon on the Summer and Winter Solstices, and at 2:00 pm on the Equinox.
Obolin was locally fabricated from a single, 50 foot long sheet of CLT, stack laminated and milled with a 7-axis robotic arm, and was assembled on site.
It is the second sculpture by Steven Holl to be installed at Art Omi's Sculpture and Architecture Park. One Two Five, a sculpture cut by CNC from 21-million-year old Lecce limestone was installed at Art Omi in 2018 and will remain on view through November 2020.
For further information on Art Omi, visit www.artomi.org
FACTS
Location: Ghent, NY
Client: Art Omi
Size: 7' x 7' x 7'
Design: Steven Holl Architects
Fabrication: Digifabshop in Hudson, NY
Engineering and life cycle analysis: Knippers Helbig