Fans of Marcel Duchamp lined up in the Yale University Art Gallery on
Feb. 18 to see the Surrealist's
motorized sculpture "Rotary Glass Plate" in operation. When viewed head-on, while they are whirling, the sculpture's lined glass plates create the optical illusion of concentric
circles. Although the work has been on view in the gallery's collections since 1941, it spent most of that time in a
stationary state. The sculpture was restored to working condition earlier this year by Gary Haller, the Becton Professor of Engineering and Applied Science (pictured in background), and Peter Kindlmann, professor of
electrical engineering. The recent demonstration of the piece opened a two-day symposium at the Yale Art Gallery on Duchamp and contemporary artist Jasper Johns
March 3, 2000
