For the June Sculpture of the Month, I chose to focus on a piece from my series for “The Fusion of Art and Physics.” I sketched the original drawing for this sculpture in the x-ray microscopy lab of Hendrik Ohldag during an experiment to improve the speed of magnetism at the Stanford Linear Accelerator in Palo Alto, CA.
You can learn more more about the project, which involved a collaboration between 17 artists and 17 physicists in the Bay Area, and link to blog posts with pictures of me sketching, here.
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Phase Transitions
As many of you know, I have been influenced by Leonard Schlain’s book Art & Physics, which proposes that, throughout history, art has predicted what science later verifies. As the first of seven sketches I drew for the project, I feel this sculpture turned out to be the most powerful in the series. For these reasons, I see this piece as a prophecy.
Hendrik, our wives, and I collaborated to name all the sculptures in the project according to various theories of modern physics. My goal in this SOM is to show how the sculpture links the theory of physics it’s named for to events unfolding in this moment.
Classically, a “phase transition” refers to matter moving from one physical state to another (e.g. solid to liquid, liquid to gas) due to the application of heat or pressure. However, in subatomic physics, the phrase applies to phenomena shifting between particles and waves depending on how we observe them. Thus, the perspective of the observer determines what exists.
In this piece, we see phases of the moon in the upper left, then a series of three figures emanating from a spiral: an owl, a fairy, and a mermaid. Each of these three characters has a mythical or archetypal connection with transformation and metamorphosis. All three appear to be actively moving through a dynamic environment, embodying an experience of change.
Developmental psychologists break life down into seven phases, each with its own developmental challenges. The way we master the challenges of each stage directly affects how we show up in the next. Will we become a particle or a wave?
Our social systems also appear to go through phases related to the developmental experiences of succeeding generations. The Fourth Turning by Neil Howe & William Strauss details a four-phase, repeating pattern of governance that has apparently persisted throughout American and Western history.
In this view, the four generational phases, or “turnings,” last about 20-25 years each. They reflect profound shifts in the national mood and culture led by four generational archetypes, always recurring in the same order: Artists, Prophets, Nomads, and Heroes.
The full cycle starts with a Post-Crisis High: the “First Turning,” lead by Artists and defined by a renewal of community life, a general period of stability, and an appreciation for things that were lost during the preceding crisis. Next, an Awakening period follows lead by Prophets, where the mood shifts to defiance and spiritual discovery. After that, an Unraveling ensues: the “Third Turning,” led by Nomads, where people become ever more distant from one another and more individualistic. Finally, a Crisis lead by Heroes takes hold, the “Fourth Turning,” where a great threat drives a surge from individualism to civic duty.
You will probably recognize, we now appear to be in or near the end of an Unraveling. Things seem to be falling apart, with less and less trust in both others and our social institutions. Baby Boomers, the children of the last Awakening, have witnessed what they’ve built Unraveling during Generation X into the Crisis of the Millennial generation. If the theory holds true, the new “Homeland” generation of Artists will Awaken a more connected, trusting, social life and governance.
The prophetic messengers in my sculpture Phase Transitions suggest a hopeful future by embodying the energy of moving together through difficult phases. These figures show us how to travel from a state of Unraveling through the unfolding crises that threaten our governing and social institutions. They all carry the spirit of a new High, and encourage us to rise to the moment with vigor and vision.
