Ryland Cook

Balancing the human body requires an extremely delicate and complicated coordination of muscular energy. The vestibular (the balance center in our ears), our eyes, our brain and our muscles, all of these parts are responsible for ensuring balance. When even one of these systems is off by the tiniest amount, our balance is compromised. The vestibular is located in our inner ear and houses three small semi-circular tubes, each tube being in charge of a different type of motion. The vestibular as a whole is no larger than quarter and is so sensitive that if it is even one millimeter out of alignment our body will notice.

The project that I have created is an interactive art piece and perhaps more fun, a game. The game is comprised of a four-pointed flat surface that balances on one central point. Any uneven weight placed on this platform will throw off the balance of the piece and everything will come tumbling down. I chose sand dollars to act as the ballast. Originally I wanted to use sand to show that even the smallest fluctuation in placement would upset the balance, but found sand dollars to represent that in an effective way while also being a perfect game piece. The size variation of the sand dollars also provides more interesting placements on the platform as a small piece needs to be out farther from the center-point than a larger piece to offset the weight. When all pieces have been played, the sculpture is complete and balanced.