George Rhoads
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George Rhoads (January 27, 1926 – July 9, 2021) was a contemporary American
painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...
,
sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
and
origami ) is the Japanese art of paper folding. In modern usage, the word "origami" is often used as an inclusive term for all folding practices, regardless of their culture of origin. The goal is to transform a flat square sheet of paper into a ...
master. He was best known for his whimsical audiokinetic sculptures in airports, science museums, shopping malls, children's hospitals, and other public places throughout the world.


Early life

Rhoads was born in Evanston, Illinois, the oldest of four children. His father, Paul S. Rhoads, was a physician and professor of internal medicine at
Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...
. His mother, Hester Chapin Rhoads, was trained as an interior decorator. Rhoads attended the
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...
with the goal of studying physics and mathematics. After earning enough credits to complete his associate degree, he began taking design and drawing classes at the Art Institute in Chicago. Two years, later he left Chicago and moved to New York City to become a painter. His work focused on portraits and impressionistic cityscapes, but he was not critically or financially successful. In 1952, Rhoads moved to Paris to continue painting. It was there that he met the American origami expert Gershon Legman who introduced him to the art of origami and the work of
Akira Yoshizawa was a Japanese origamist, considered to be the grandmaster of origami. He is credited with raising origami from a craft to a living art. According to his own estimation made in 1989, he created more than 50,000 models, of which only a few hundred ...
. This meeting sparked Rhoads' interest and he began practicing origami and inventing new folds. His most notable contribution to the field became known as the Blintzed Bird Base, now a standard origami fold used for creating an animal with four legs, two ears and a tail from a single sheet of paper.


Audiokinetic ball machine sculptures

Rhoads created his first rolling ball machine in the late 1950s. In the 1960s, Rhoads began experimenting with kinetic sound-producing metal sculptures. As he described these early machines, "You have a whole range of things happening in succession. Little balls rolling down a track are the motive power that hits a hammer that hits a xylophone bar or blows a whistle." After seeing an exhibit of Rhoads' ball machines in Greenwich Village, the sculptor
Hans Van de Bovenkamp Hans Van de Bovenkamp (born 1938) is a Dutch-born American sculptor. Van de Bovenkamp was born in Garderen, Garderen, Holland in 1938 and immigrated to the United States in 1958. He is best known for his large scale abstract work in bronze, stain ...
hired him to invent devices to use in his metal fountains. Eventually, Rhoads began creating fountains of his own. Rhoads continued to develop his audio-kinetic sculptures and his work gained national prominence after being fshown on ''The
David Frost Sir David Paradine Frost (7 April 1939 – 31 August 2013) was an English television host, journalist, comedian and writer. He rose to prominence during the satire boom in the United Kingdom when he was chosen to host the satirical programme ...
Show'' and ''Today''. In the early 1970s, the shopping mall magnate David Bermant commissioned him to build audiokinetic sculptures for his shopping centers in Rochester, New York, and Hamden, Connecticut, and for years afterward continued to promote and sell Rhoads' work. Rhoads' sculptures became known for their precise clockwork-like mechanisms governed by weight and timing while still maintaining the appearance of spontaneity and randomness. He promoted the concept that the machine itself was a work of art, and his pieces were designed to demystify machinery and stimulate viewer reaction. Modernist sculptor and Professor Emeritus at Princeton University, James Seawright, said of Rhoads' sculptures: "they embody almost every basic element of machinery, combined in a bewildering variety of ways. There's a level of mechanical genius behind inventing complex mechanisms." In response to the growing number of commissions, Rhoads partnered Robert McGuire to create his sculptures at RockStream Studios in Ithaca, New York. The studio and Rhoads' whimsical sculptures were later featured in an episode of the American children's television series, ''
Mister Rogers' Neighborhood ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' (sometimes shortened to ''Mister Rogers'') is an American half-hour educational children's television series that ran from 1968 to 2001. It was created and hosted by Fred Rogers. Its original incarnation, the se ...
''. In 1981, Rhoads was commissioned to build a sculpture entitled 42nd Street Ballroom for the New York/New Jersey Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York City, which ushered in a period of production for larger, monumental ball machine sculptures. In these large machines, chain-driven lifters carry balls to the top of the sculpture. Then, using only gravity, the balls travel down several different tracks that loop, twist and spiral. The balls trigger motion, hit objects, strike bells, gongs, chimes, drums and even xylophone bars, allowing each machine to create its own music. Once the ball reaches the bottom of the sculpture, it is lifted to the top and the process continues. In 1990, Rhoads created a kinetic rolling ball sculpture titled ''Newton's Dream'' that was installed at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. It was replaced with a pair of new machines, jointly titled ''Newton's Convergence'', in 2017. Rhoads' sculptures have been installed in public spaces and private collections around the world. The pieces range in size from small wall-mounted sculptures to machines that fill entire rooms and span multiple stories. Some of his work belongs to permanent museum collections at institutions like the
Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...
in New York and the
Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the United States. The museum is based in the Art Institute of Chicago Building in Chicago's Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park. Its collection, stewa ...
. Nearly all of his sculptures are still in operation and they have been noted for their popularity with the public. In 2007, Creative Machines (located in Tucson, Arizona) took over the creation of Rhoads' sculptures and continues the tradition of Rhoads' artwork. The company continues to use the techniques developed by Rhoads in its ball machine sculptures by incorporating similar fabrication methods, design elements and strategies for making reliable, long lasting sculptures.


Death

Rhoads died at his son's home in
Chinon Chinon () is a Communes of France, commune in the Indre-et-Loire Departments of France, department, Centre-Val de Loire, France. The traditional province around Chinon, Touraine, became a favorite resort of French kings and their nobles beginn ...
, France, on July 9, 2021, at the age of 95.


Selected public works

*The "Gizmo" in Champlain Centre Mall, Plattsburgh, New York *42nd Street Ballroom,
Port Authority Bus Terminal The Port Authority Bus Terminal (colloquially known as the Port Authority and by its acronym PABT) is a bus station, bus terminal located in Manhattan in New York City. It is the busiest bus terminal in the world by volume of traffic, serving ab ...
, New York, New York *Exercise in Fugality,
Logan Airport General Edward Lawrence Logan International Airport — also known as Boston Logan International Airport — is an international airport located mostly in East Boston and partially in Winthrop, Massachusetts, United States. Covering , it has ...
, Terminal A, Boston, Massachusetts *Science on a Roll,
The Tech Museum of Innovation The Tech Interactive (formerly The Tech Museum of Innovation, commonly known as The Tech) is a science and technology center that offers hands-on activities, labs, design challenges and other STEAM education resources. It is located in downtown ...
, San Jose, California *''
Archimedean Excogitation ''Archimedean Excogitation'' is a 1987 audiokinetic rolling ball sculpture by George Rhoads. It is located in the atrium of the Museum of Science (Boston), Museum of Science in Boston. Description ''Archimedean wikt:excogitation, Excogitation'' ...
'', Museum of Science, Boston, Massachusetts *'' Newton's Dream (1990)'',
Franklin Institute The Franklin Institute is a science museum and a center of science education and research in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is named after the American scientist and wikt:statesman, statesman Benjamin Franklin. It houses the Benjamin Franklin ...
, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania *Uridice, Discovery Science Center, Costa Mesa, California *Maquina del Vacilon, Papalote Museo del Nino, Mexico City, Mexico *Celestial Balldergarten,
Philadelphia International Airport Philadelphia International Airport is the primary international airport serving Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It served 30.8 million passengers annually in 2024, making it the busiest airport in Pennsylvania and the 21st-busies ...
, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania *Global Enerjoy, Future Energy Pavilion,
Seville Expo '92 The Universal Exhibition of Seville 1992 – Expo '92 (officially: ) was a universal exhibition held from Monday 20 April to Monday 12 October 1992, at the , in Seville, Spain. The theme for the expo was "The Age of Discoveries", celebrating the ...
, Seville, Spain *Incrediball Circus II,
Akron Children's Hospital Akron Children's Hospital (ACH) is a pediatric acute care hospital in Northeast Ohio that provides care to infants, children, adolescents, young adults, aged 0–21 and even some older adults. Akron Children's has hospital campuses in downtown Akr ...
, Akron, Ohio *Angel Music,
Los Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport is the primary international airport serving Los Angeles and its Greater Los Angeles, surrounding metropolitan area, in the U.S. state of California. LAX is located in the Westchester, Los Angeles, Westcheste ...
, Los Angeles, California *Life Renews Itself,
Ōsaka Namba Station is a major railway station on the Kintetsu Namba Line and Hanshin Namba Line in the Namba district of Chūō-ku, Osaka, Japan. It is adjacent to Namba Station and JR Namba Station. Trains of the Nara Line depart from and arrive at the stati ...
, Osaka, Japan *Color Coaster, Stepping Stones Museum for Children, Norwalk, Connecticut *Newton's Daydream, Clark Planetarium, Salt Lake City, Utah *Pythagorean Fantasy, College of Engineering at the
University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: the University of Colorado Boulder, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, the University of Colorado Denver, and the U ...
, Boulder, Colorado *Based on Balls,
Chase Field Chase Field, formerly Bank One Ballpark, is a retractable roof, retractable-roof stadium in downtown Phoenix, Arizona. It is the ballpark of Major League Baseball's Arizona Diamondbacks. It opened in 1998 Arizona Diamondbacks season, 1998, the ...
, Phoenix, Arizona *Loopy Links, Adventure of the Seas, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines *Funkinetic,
Science Centre Singapore Science Centre Singapore, previously known as the Singapore Science Centre, is a science-themed attraction in Jurong East, Singapore, specialising in the promotion of scientific and technological education for the general public. It houses ove ...
, Singapore *Eureka, American Museum of Science and Energy, Oak Ridge, Tennessee *Ball Circus,
ABT Electronics Abt Electronics is an independent family-owned retailer in the United States of consumer electronics, major appliances, and furniture. Abt operates 880,000 square feet at a single location in Glenview, Illinois, on of land ("... 1,200-emplo ...
, Glenview, Illinois *Kinetikon, National Taiwan Science Education Center, Taipei, Taiwan. *Cavortech,
Avampato Discovery Museum The Clay Center in Charleston, West Virginia Charleston () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in West Virginia, most populous city of the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is the county seat of Kana ...
, Charleston, West Virginia *Tower of Sisyphus, Chesapeake Energy Corporation, Oklahoma City Oklahoma *Life is a Ball,
Scientific Games Light & Wonder, Inc., formerly Scientific Games Corporation (SG), is an American corporation that provides gambling products and services. The company is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. Light & Wonder's gaming division provides products such ...
, Las Vegas, Nevada *Magic Menagerie,
National Taiwan University Hospital The National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH; ) is a medical facility located in the Zhongzheng District of Taipei, Taiwan. It started operations under Japanese rule in Daitōtei (today's Dadaocheng) on 18 June 1895, and moved to its present ...
, Taipei, Taiwan *Electric Ball Circus, Edmonton science centre (formerly at
West Edmonton Mall West Edmonton Mall (WEM) is a large shopping mall in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, that is owned, managed, and operated by Triple Five Group. It is the second most visited mall in Canada, after the Toronto Eaton Centre in Toronto, followed by Met ...
)


Museums/collections


Museums

*
Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...
, New York City *The
Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the United States. The museum is based in the Art Institute of Chicago Building in Chicago's Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park. Its collection, stewa ...
, Illinois *The
Butler Institute of American Art The Butler Institute of American Art (BIAA), located on Wick Avenue in Youngstown, Ohio, United States, was the first museum dedicated exclusively to American art. Established by local industrialist and philanthropist Joseph G. Butler, Jr., the ...
, Youngstown, Ohio *The
Wadsworth Atheneum The Wadsworth Atheneum is an art museum in Hartford, Connecticut. The Wadsworth is noted for its collections of European Baroque art, ancient Egyptian and Classical bronzes, French and American Impressionism, Impressionist paintings, Hudson Riv ...
, Hartford, Connecticut *Franklin Institute of Science, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. "Newton's Convergence" *The
Science Spectrum The Science Spectrum is a science and technology museum and aquarium in Lubbock, Texas. It is a 501-C3 nonprofit educational corporation and a member of the Association of Science and Technology Centers. The Spectrum features over 250 interacti ...
, Lubbock, Texas


Collections

*
Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; born Louis Bernstein; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was th ...
*
Malcolm Forbes Malcolm Stevenson Forbes (August 19, 1919 – February 24, 1990) was an American businessman and Republican Party politician most prominently known as the publisher of ''Forbes'' magazine, which was founded by his father B. C. Forbes. He repres ...
* Lawrence Tisch *David Elliot *Herbert Adler *
Yevgeny Yevtushenko Yevgeny Aleksandrovich Yevtushenko (; 18 July 1933 – 1 April 2017) was a Soviet and Russian poet, novelist, essayist, dramatist, screenwriter, publisher, actor, editor, university professor, and director of several films. Biography Early lif ...
*David Bermant *William Marsteller *American Scientific Company *
Westinghouse Electric Company Westinghouse Electric Company LLC is an American nuclear power company formed in 1999 from the nuclear power division of the original Westinghouse Electric Corporation. It offers nuclear products and services to utilities internationally, includ ...


Gallery

File:Chockablock Clock.jpg , Chockablock Clock Ball Machine, located in Strawberry Square, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania File:Archimedean Excogitation.jpg, ''
Archimedean Excogitation ''Archimedean Excogitation'' is a 1987 audiokinetic rolling ball sculpture by George Rhoads. It is located in the atrium of the Museum of Science (Boston), Museum of Science in Boston. Description ''Archimedean wikt:excogitation, Excogitation'' ...
'' can be found at the
Boston Museum of Science The Museum of Science (MoS) is a nature and science museum and indoor zoological establishment located in Science Park, a plot of land in Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts, Cambridge, Massachusetts, spanning the Charles River. Along with over 7 ...
and is said to hold the attention of viewers for much longer than many of the other exhibits housed there.


References


Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rhoads, George 1926 births 2021 deaths 20th-century American painters Artists from Evanston, Illinois 21st-century American painters 20th-century American sculptors 21st-century American sculptors University of Chicago alumni Sculptors from Illinois