The Five Platonic Solids - Silver Plated
In September 2008 I was commissioned to construct a set of the Five Platonic Solids for Mathematician Professor John Griggs Thompson - noted for his work in the field of finite groups, awarded the Fields Medal 1970 & the 2008 Abel Prize.
Original
Silver Plated Stainless Steel
12cm x 12cm x 12cm
When Professor John Griggs Thompson approached me in September 2008 to construct a set of the Five Platonic Solids I felt extremely honoured but rather daunted. We initially worked together on this project for about six months. Getting to grips with the subject and materials was an exciting and steep learning curve for me but with the professor's ongoing encouragement and constant support I pushed on and eventually devised my own system for soldering complex vertices - the Icosahedron being the ultimate challenge for me. Throughout the process I burnt my way through several pairs of gloves, set fire to clothing, shed rather a lot of tears, had some sleepless nights but I learnt so much. Working on this joint project with Professor Thompson has been fantastic. I am always happy to construct further bespoke sets of the frames! After completion of the initial set commissioned for himself Professor John Griggs Thompson commissioned me to construct a further set of the Five Platonic Solids which he presented to the Mathematics Department at the University of Yale in March 2009 - in memory of his colleague and friend Walter Feit with whom he worked - Feit-Thompson theorem that all finite groups of odd order are solvable.
If you are interested in commissioning a set of the Five Platonic Solid frames or you have any other interesting construction challenges for me please e-mail me with your contact details and I will get back to you.
I am currently working on a sculpture in copper of an 'X' Chromosome commissioned by Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children - another great honour and an exciting challenge.