Gonads of the Rich and Famous

George W. Hart


This sculpture consists of two balls, each three inches in diameter. They are constructed of plaster by a process of 3D printing, which means that they built in very thin computer-deposited layers.

For this piece, I began with two computer-generated models of polyhedra and adapted their edges into solid forms in different ways.  In the first the edges remain lace-like at the surface of the sphere, and in the second they are carried to the center. In both, I made the thickness of each edge proportional to its length, which helps to make them more organic. Here are my initial models of the two:

The name Gonads of the Rich and Famous reflects, in part, the fact that these are very expensive to produce.  3D Printing is a new and expensive process. I hope that the costs come down in the future, so ordinary people can enjoy such nice gonads.

Additional material about the mathematics behind this sculpture is given in this paper.



copyright 2000, George W. Hart