Graceful Collisions - Rolling Ball Sculpture #360
$975 including shipping in the United States. International buyers, please include your city and postal code for a shipping quote.
23" high X 18" wide X 17" deep
3 different tracks - 1" colorful glass marbles
Over 30 feet of stainless steel track
Graceful Collisions is a manually operated desktop rolling ball sculpture with three different paths and over 36 feet of track for the marbles to travel. Instead of using a motorized lift, you simply take the marbles from the bottom and place them in the queue at the top. Pressing the handle at the bottom releases one, two, or all of the marbles at once. You decide how many you want rolling at any given time.
Two track switches divide the marbles between three different paths. The first track features a tall zigzag section, while the second has two tall, skinny spirals connected by a short straight track. After leaving the second spiral, the marbles make a quick U-turn before both tracks merge into a small perforated stainless steel collector plate and head toward the bottom.
The third track is the longest, with lots of really nice, smooth curves weaving their way through the sculpture. There are long stretches of curvy track, some wavy sections, a small dip, and a flat spiral. From there, the marbles roll into a tipping arm that can handle several marbles at once. As the arm tips, it releases them one by one onto the lower track.
One of my favorite parts of this sculpture happens at the very bottom, where the marbles from two different directions meet on the same track. They collide head-on, bouncing back and forth and transferring their momentum between each other, much like a Newton's cradle. It's this combination of smooth, graceful movement and the collisions at the bottom that gives Graceful Collisions its name.
Like all of my rolling ball sculptures, this one is handmade from stainless steel, with each track individually bent and TIG welded. It's a great desktop sculpture with lots of movement, different paths to follow, and the added fun of being able to control how many marbles are rolling at once.