Santa Fe Opera - 2021

Requiring functional omni-directional pivots with alternating axis, this piece was first drafted full-scale in Vectorworks and then plasma-cut to my specifications out of 1/8” sheet steel. I then created a series of step-down gigs and face-welded each piece together, ensuring with spacers that each ring was equally spaced all the way around. Each of those rings was then given an interior plate and pivots using low-heat tack welding, machine squares and magnets. The pivots were placed per the drafting but double-checked by through-threading long pieces of rod to ensure points were placed exactly in-line opposite each other. The outside and top rings were applied the same way, timing out 4” sections of weld to avoid heat warp and create seamless surfaces on all sides. I milled 1/2” UHMW spacers for between each ring as I assembled them, and the base was fabricated out of layers of 3/4 MDF with a routed in slot for a counterweight that welded to the outside ring. I then worked with lighting to make it accessible for internal LEDs. The entire piece then bolted in to the raked stage.