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DELTA PRIZE RECIPIENTS AWARDED ORIGINAL ARTWORK
Recipients of the Delta Prize for Global Understanding will be
presented with an original artwork designed by Barbara Mann and
Gary Noffke of the University of Georgia's Lamar Dodd School of
Art. The piece is a sculpture made of bronze, titanium and sterling
silver that weighs almost four pounds and is approximately six
inches by six inches.
In the center of the sculpture sits a sterling silver medallion
weighing almost four troy ounces that represents the earth. The
abstract nature of the land and water in low relief on the surface
of the medallion aims to avoid the identification or predominance
of any continent.
A mixture of Italian beeswax and hard wax was used to mold the
bronze form surrounding the medallion, which Noffke marked with
undistinguishable signs and symbols. A diagonal titanium pin functions
as the axis on which the earth rotates.
The base is made of bronze, and the triangle-shaped ends represent
the Greek “delta” symbol, alluding to Delta Air Lines, says Mann,
who teaches jewelry and metalworks. The titanium ball on top is
“a reference to outer space exploration, because thematerial is
space-age -- very strong and light,” she says.
The raised lettering on the medallion is unusual because each
letter is hand-carved into the mold -- the most difficult part
of creating the piece, according to Mann.
“It's a real honor to do an artwork presentation piece,” she says.
“It's the most exciting project I've ever worked on, because of
what it's for. There's a lot of symbolism and potential for the
viewer to read into it what they want.”
Mann was commissioned in 1996 to do a piece for the Olympic Games,
which is now on display at the Nexus Center for Contemporary Art
in Atlanta. Noffke's work has been collected by such institutions
as the Mint Museum of Art in Charlotte and the Museum of Contemporary
Crafts in New York. The two have collaborated on previous projects. |
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