From Easter Island to Africa, from Greenland to New Guinea — David Barr’s work is displayed worldwide. Specializing in projects that employ geographic, geometric and geological elements, his Polaris Ring outside the Center’s main entrance often reminds visitors of a modern-day Stonehenge.
Fifty steel columns encircle a five ton kona dolomite boulder. Smaller stones spinout in a spiral pattern on either side.
”The combination of stone and steel represents the interface of prehistoric imagery with man’s technological imagery and strengths,“ Barr notes. The result is a mystical progression of space and volume that draws people toward the facility.
Based on a universal symbol — Polaris, the North Star — viewers are able to stand behind the sculpture’s center stone and look between the two tallest columns to see the star.
”Instead of having to look at the overall sculpture from the outside, I want people to be able to experience if from inside as well,“ he says.
(Source: Library of Michigan)