Accuracy is an essential element in the everyday work of Robert Szczarba, but when the Yale mathematician turned his attention to creating a sculpture depicting the world, aesthetics ruled over exactness.
"Continents," the 20-foot-wide, 4-foot-high sculpture he designed for the Yale Center for International and Area Studies' new home in Henry R. Luce Hall, is an impressionistic rendering of the world's largest land masses. While the continents are clearly recognizable in his steel and brass sculpture, the work is "an image of the world that is distorted beyond that of ordinary maps," says Professor Szczarba, who was commissioned to create the piece by Gaddis Smith, former director of YCIAS and the Larned Professor of History.
"I basically put things in a way that I thought were appealing," says Professor Szczarba, noting that he also took creative liberties in his design by placing Australia farther to the west than it really is, leaving out some large countries and the continent of Antarctica, and positioning the American continent "improperly." In fact, he says, his concept for the design of "Continents" crystallized in his mind when he came up with the idea of extending the latitude lines so as to meet in two points. "After I decided on that, my design for the sculpture developed relatively quickly," says Professor Szczarba, who made a small-scale version of the work in his home studio. The full-size sculpture was crafted in the Instrumentation Lab of the Josiah Willard Gibbs Research Laboratories.
The many compliments he has received on the sculpture since it was installed last January are evidence that Professor Szczarba's sense of aesthetics is shared by many on campus and beyond.
"I think the piece came out absolutely marvelously," comments Professor Smith. "It kind of glows when the natural light changes on it, and looks wonderful under the artificial lights. All of the comments I've heard have been very positive. Of course, we also had some fun talking about what places were being left out, and during the dedication ceremony I kidded Bob by telling him I was getting telegrams from some penguins in Antarctica who were upset their home was not represented."
"Continents" is the first of Professor Szczarba's works to be installed at Yale and is the largest work he has produced since he began sculpting with metal as a hobby some 10 years ago. In 1990, he created a piece titled "Three Pentagons," which is based on a complicated mathematical theorem. The work was commissioned by the American Mathematical Society for presentation to the Mathematical Association of America on the occasion of its 75th anniversary.
According to Professor Szczarba, time constraints during a six- year term he completed last spring as deputy provost for the physical sciences and engineering made it difficult for him to keep up his hobby. However, his work on "Continents" marked a serious return to his art. His latest project, on which he is still working, is another sculpture based on a mathematical idea that was commissioned by a mathematician in North Carolina. "I produced a model and shipped it down to him, only to discover later that it was in pieces by the time it arrived," says Professor Szczarba. "I am now working on a second model using stronger materials. Each project is a learning experience for me."