Honors College, Gearharts Dedicate Curvahedra Sculpture

With a little help from his grandchildren, former Chancellor G. David Gearhart cuts the red ribbon. Photo: Russell Cothren.

Jane Gearhart photographs her grandchildren within the curvahedra sculpture. Photo: Chieko Hara.

Former Chancellor Gearhart and interim Chancellor Charles Robinson catch up before the dedication ceremony. Photo: Chieko Hara.

Dave Gearhart reflects on the value of public art that ‘intertwines art and science.’ Photo: Chieko Hara.

Dave Gearhart chats with the faculty team who led work on the project (l-r) Edmund Harriss, Carl Smith and Emily Baker. Photo: Chieko Hara.

The sculpture’s steel curves frame the team that brought it to life. Photo: Chieko Hara.

The Nikola Radan Quartet provided cool jazz for the reception. Players are (l-r) James Joseph, Radan, Cody Lucas and Alexander Wiegel. Photo: Chieko Hara.

Honors College Dean Lynda Coon, at left, chats with Linda McMath and Bob McMath, who served as the college’s first dean. Photo: Chieko Hara.

Former Bodenhamer Fellow Emily Baker celebrates with her mother, Cecilia Baker (at left), and Honors College assistant dean emerita Maribeth Lynes (at right), who helped recruit Emily to the University of Arkansas. Photo: Chieko Hara.

Former Chancellor John White exchanges quips with Scott Varady, executive director of the Razorback Foundation. Photo: Chieko Hara.

The Gearhart family enjoys the reception in their honor. Photo: Chieko Hara.

Russell Cothren

With a little help from his grandchildren, former Chancellor G. David Gearhart cuts the red ribbon on the new Curvahedra sculpture in the Gearhart Hall courtyard. The sculpture was funded by a generous gift from Dave and Jane Gearhart.

More than 100 U of A leaders, faculty and friends gathered with former Chancellor G. David Gearhart and his wife Jane last Friday, Oct. 15, to dedicate a steel curvahedra sculpture recently installed in the courtyard at Gearhart Hall.

The spherical sculpture marries deep mathematical ideas with public art placemaking and was funded by a generous gift from the Gearharts.

"When I was chancellor, I wanted to put a lot of outdoor and indoor art on campus," Gearhart recalled when addressing the crowd. "It's always been a great interest of mine." This new sculpture complements several examples of public art acquired during Gearhart's administration and furthers his vision of commissioning pieces "where art and science are intertwined. This curvahedra is our small, modest contribution to the attainment of knowledge."

Interim Chancellor Charles Robinson emphasized that this gift speaks to the Gearharts' ongoing legacy of service.

"Jane and Dave taught me so much about serving here on campus. One thing is crystal clear: they love the U of A, and they will continue to support it."

After the Gearharts cut the red ribbon binding the Curvahedra, with enthusiastic assistance from four grandchildren in attendance, the crowd stepped into the welcome warmth of the Honors Student Lounge for a reception accompanied by a jazz quartet led by music instructor Nikola Radan.

Inspired by an Honors Course

The Curvahedra sculpture originated from a 2018 Honors College seminar, Place in Mind, where honors students from a wide range of disciplines investigated ways to activate the dormant courtyard space. Led by mathematics professor and artist Edmund Harriss and landscape architecture professor Carl Smith, the students ultimately proposed a sculpture inspired by Harriss' system of curvahedra paper models.

Honors College alumna and former Bodenhamer Fellow Emily Baker (B.Arch. summa cum laude, '04), now an assistant professor of architecture, worked with Harriss to take the piece from a palm-sized paper model to a 12-foot-diameter steel sculpture. Local architectural firm Modus Studio, cofounded by alumni Chris Baribeau (B.Arch. cum laude, '03), Josh Siebert (B.Arch. '02) and Jason Wright (B.Arch. '04), fabricated the sculpture.

Smith, Harriss and Baker each spoke at the dedication, reflecting on the thrill of seeing an idea come to life, the Gauss-Bonnet theorem that undergirds the sculpture's simple curves and the future potential generated by the innovative production process.

"Our team is working with scientists at MIT to develop new construction techniques, inspired by the tools used to produce our Curvahedra, that would save money and cut waste," said Honors College Dean Lynda Coon. "That's a tremendous return on our investment here!"

Although the industrial potential is still being explored, there's no doubt that the sculpture has galvanized use of the courtyard, where students frequently pause to study, eat lunch or chat with a friend. Drop by at 11 a.m. on Thursdays to catch Dean Coon holding her weekly office hour with students within the Curvahedra's steel curves.