Roger Williams Students and Associate Professor Create a ‘Moss Sphere’
BRISTOL, R.I., June 2008 – A large fuzzy gumball? A green planetary orb? A spherical alien pod? While it may look like it belongs in a sci-fi flick, it’s actually the “Moss Sphere,” a newly installed sculpture on Roger Williams University’s waterfront.
Standing at 10 feet in diameter, the Moss Sphere was created and constructed by 28 Roger Williams University students under the leadership of Janet Pihlblad, an RWU visiting artist and associate professor.
The sculpture, which was finished in early June, is situated on the grass near the University’s waterfront seashell path, just north of the Learning Platform. Minimal in design, the Moss Sphere is completely covered with a layer of bright green moss and features one simple window frame cut out of the sphere’s side facing Mount Hope Bay. Designed as a temporary installment, the Moss Sphere will remain on display through the summer.
Beginning last October, the 28 students enrolled in Professor Pihlblad’s visual arts classes collaborated to create the concept and to construct the structure. The design of the sphere involved constructing a wood skeletal structure, stretching canvas, painting and applying moss. Professor Pihlblad says the artwork is designed to express wonderment and “an inside-out feeling about the intimacy of home and seemingly faraway places.”
“I had worked with professional fabricators before, but never with students and never on quite this large of a project,” Professor Pihlblad said. “Pulling it all together, making every aspect work and teaching ‘how-to’ simultaneously was a challenge, but the enthusiasm and exuberance of the students was a continual thrill for me.”