Pod Sculpture in Portland, Oregon

Pod, constructed by Beeman and David Bermudez, and engineered by Beeman and Peterson Structural Engineers, is considered both interactive and kinetic, with a central, vertical pendulum that swings back and forth when pushed. The sculpture cost $40,000-$50,000 and was funded by the Portland Streetcar Project. Pod is part of the City of Portland and Multnomah County Public Art Collection. Beeman stated that he was thinking about the design and planning of Portland and how the city's infrastructure, architecture, and dynamic environment are what make Portland unique and great.

He designed Pod with a static tripod base, representing the infrastructure, and a moving pendulum, representing the vibrancy and life of Portland. He said that the most interesting part of the sculpture is watching people try to move it. The materials used for Pod include stainless steel, galvanized steel, bronze, titanium, lead, rubber, and other materials. The tripod base of the sculpture has a 14-15 foot diameter and each of the three legs, cut to size by BBC Steel, stands 14 feet tall.

The central pendulum structure of Pod consists of 73 titanium rods, each connecting to a 'star fruit'-shaped bronze bulb at the base of the pendulum. Pod underwent maintenance in August 2010. A kinetic prototype of Pod, named Dual Pendulum, was installed at Oregon State University for Da Vinci Days in 2007. D. K. Row of The Oregonian compared Pod to a 'mechanical spider with an unlikely spine sticking in the air. Row also noted that Pod evoked the curves of sculptor Richard Serra and the design style of architect Frank Gehry. Michael Powell, owner of Powell's City of Books (located across the street from Pod), called the sculpture 'wonderful'.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata