Solar Energy Sculptures

	Artists: Joan Webster Price and Herbert Price



        

       
       Image above:Solar Arch,maquette for a thermal hot water                  
       sculpture, copper, steel marble chips, 43 x 81 x 3 cm, 1997.    
       
       Image below:Reflections on a Winter Solstice, maquette for a 
       thermal hot water sculpture, stainless steel, glass pool, 
       31 x 76 x 76 cm, 1997. 
       (Photos courtesy of the Rauma Art Museum)
       


       
        
      
      
      Artist's Statement:These solar energy sculptures represent the 
       joining of a symbolic object and energy source. Just as Stonehenge  		
       served as both religious monument and astronomical observatory 
       for the calculation of seasons, solar sculpture serves to objectify 
       the aspirations of humanity to harness the sun's energy as well as to    
       actually capture that energy. 

		
       One could cite from the earliest records the artists that have 
       unified in work the values and ideals of their time, inspiring,  
       instructing and functioning through art. Solar sculpture is the 
       continuation of that tradition. It is a sculptural monument to the  
       life-giving energy of the sun. Each who views it will carry away
       his/her own message---whether aesthetic, symbolic or functional. 
       To reach its highest goal, solar sculpture will unify all three.
       
       The stainless-steel surfaces of our sculptures that are not 
       involved with solar collection are intended to reflect the 
       brilliance of sunlight. The pattern of light and shadow cast by the  
       sculptural elements will be dramatic throughout the day. There will 
       be a significant environmental space inside the arc of the sculpture 
       for dance, poetry, performance, theater or environmental events.

       The precise angles of inclination of the elements in the final 
       design will be determined by the geographic latitude of the 
       installation and the need for the seasonal optimization of the capture 
       of solar energy. The solar-collection components forming the planes   
       inclined toward the sun can be of any type---for example, photovoltaic  
       cells or hot water---without changing the configuration of the design. 

       Joan Webster Price and Herbert Price, 35 Ridgewood Terrace, Maplewood,    
       NJ 07040, U.S.A. E-mail:HJSTAR@aol.com
       Portions of this text appeared in the Ylem Newsletter [Vol. 14, No. 5,       
       May 1994])
        

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