.gif){kind=spacer}
Nuclear Energy (Henry Moore sculpture)
Encyclopedia
Nuclear Energy is a bronze
sculpture by Henry Moore
that is located on the campus of the University of Chicago
at the site of world's first nuclear reactor
, Chicago Pile-1
. It is on Ellis Avenue, between the Max Palevsky West dormitory and the Regenstein Library
. This site is located in the Hyde Park
community area
of Chicago
in Cook County, Illinois
, United States
. The location commemorates the exact location where the Manhattan Project
team devised the first nuclear reactor to produce the first self-sustaining controlled nuclear reaction
under the former stands of Stagg Field
.
The sculpture was commissioned by the B. F. Ferguson monument fund.
The sculpture is described as 14 feet (4.3 m) in height and 8 feet (2.4 m) in diameter
by the Smithsonian Institution
, and it sits atop a base that is 1.5 foot (0.4572 m) in height and 10 feet (3 m) in diameter. However, the University of Chicago says it is only 12 feet (3.7 m) in height. The Henry Moore Foundation
lists its height at 3.66m. The sculpture reminds some of the human skull
, while it reminds others of an atomic mushroom cloud
.
The sculpture was erected for and dedicated at the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the splitting of the atom
on the grounds by Enrico Fermi
on December 2, 1942. Thus, it was dedicated at precisely 3:36 p.m. on December 2, 1967. The site of the first nuclear reaction received designation as a National Historic Landmark
on February 18, 1965 and was added to the newly created National Register of Historic Places
(NRHP) on October 15, 1966 as one of the original designated historic places. Chicago Pile-1 is one of four Chicago NRHPs on the original list. The site was named a Chicago Landmark
on October 27, 1971.
A working model for Nuclear Energy ("Atom Piece (Working Model for Nuclear Energy) 1964-65") is on display at the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art
, Japan.
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
sculpture by Henry Moore
Henry Moore
Henry Spencer Moore OM CH FBA was an English sculptor and artist. He was best known for his semi-abstract monumental bronze sculptures which are located around the world as public works of art....
that is located on the campus of the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
at the site of world's first nuclear reactor
Nuclear reactor
A nuclear reactor is a device to initiate and control a sustained nuclear chain reaction. Most commonly they are used for generating electricity and for the propulsion of ships. Usually heat from nuclear fission is passed to a working fluid , which runs through turbines that power either ship's...
, Chicago Pile-1
Chicago Pile-1
Chicago Pile-1 was the world's first man-made nuclear reactor. CP-1 was built on a rackets court, under the abandoned west stands of the original Alonzo Stagg Field stadium, at the University of Chicago. The first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction was initiated in CP-1 on December 2, 1942...
. It is on Ellis Avenue, between the Max Palevsky West dormitory and the Regenstein Library
Regenstein Library
The Joseph Regenstein Library is the main library of the University of Chicago, named after industrialist and philanthropist Joseph Regenstein. Holding over 7.9 million volumes, it is one of the largest repositories of books in the world, and is noted for its brutalist architecture.-History:The...
. This site is located in the Hyde Park
Hyde Park, Chicago
Hyde Park, located on the South Side of the City of Chicago, in Cook County, Illinois, United States and seven miles south of the Chicago Loop, is a Chicago neighborhood and one of 77 Chicago community areas. It is home to the University of Chicago, the Hyde Park Art Center, the Museum of Science...
community area
Community areas of Chicago
Community areas in Chicago refers to the work of the Social Science Research Committee at University of Chicago which has unofficially divided the City of Chicago into 77 community areas. These areas are well-defined and static...
of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
in Cook County, Illinois
Cook County, Illinois
Cook County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois, with its county seat in Chicago. It is the second most populous county in the United States after Los Angeles County. The county has 5,194,675 residents, which is 40.5 percent of all Illinois residents. Cook County's population is larger than...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The location commemorates the exact location where the Manhattan Project
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
team devised the first nuclear reactor to produce the first self-sustaining controlled nuclear reaction
Nuclear reaction
In nuclear physics and nuclear chemistry, a nuclear reaction is semantically considered to be the process in which two nuclei, or else a nucleus of an atom and a subatomic particle from outside the atom, collide to produce products different from the initial particles...
under the former stands of Stagg Field
Stagg Field
Amos Alonzo Stagg Field is the name of two different football fields for the University of Chicago. The earliest Stagg Field is probably best remembered for its role in a landmark scientific achievement by Enrico Fermi during the Manhattan Project. The site of the first nuclear reaction received...
.
The sculpture was commissioned by the B. F. Ferguson monument fund.
It’s a rather strange thing really but I’d already done the idea for this sculpture before Professor McNeill and his colleagues from the University of Chicago came to see me on Sunday morning to tell me about the whole proposition. They told me (which I’d only vaguely known) that FermiEnrico FermiEnrico Fermi was an Italian-born, naturalized American physicist particularly known for his work on the development of the first nuclear reactor, Chicago Pile-1, and for his contributions to the development of quantum theory, nuclear and particle physics, and statistical mechanics...
, the Italian nuclear physicist, started or really made the first successful controlled nuclear fission in a temporary building. I think it was a squash court - a wooden building - which from the outside looked entirely unlike where a thing of such an important nature might take place. But this experiment was carried on in secret and it meant that by being successful Man was able to control this huge force for peaceful purposes as well as destructive ones. They came to me to tell me that they thought where such an important event in history took place ought to be marked and they wondered whether I would do a sculpture which would stand on the spot. (Henry Moore quoted in Art Journal, New York, spring 1973, p.286)
The sculpture is described as 14 feet (4.3 m) in height and 8 feet (2.4 m) in diameter
Diameter
In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle...
by the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
, and it sits atop a base that is 1.5 foot (0.4572 m) in height and 10 feet (3 m) in diameter. However, the University of Chicago says it is only 12 feet (3.7 m) in height. The Henry Moore Foundation
Henry Moore Foundation
The Henry Moore Foundation is a registered charity in England, established for education and promotion of the fine arts — in particular, to advance understanding of the works of Henry Moore. The charity was set up with a gift from the artist in 1977...
lists its height at 3.66m. The sculpture reminds some of the human skull
Human skull
The human skull is a bony structure, skeleton, that is in the human head and which supports the structures of the face and forms a cavity for the brain.In humans, the adult skull is normally made up of 22 bones...
, while it reminds others of an atomic mushroom cloud
Mushroom cloud
A mushroom cloud is a distinctive pyrocumulus mushroom-shaped cloud of condensed water vapor or debris resulting from a very large explosion. They are most commonly associated with nuclear explosions, but any sufficiently large blast will produce the same sort of effect. They can be caused by...
.
The sculpture was erected for and dedicated at the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the splitting of the atom
Atom
The atom is a basic unit of matter that consists of a dense central nucleus surrounded by a cloud of negatively charged electrons. The atomic nucleus contains a mix of positively charged protons and electrically neutral neutrons...
on the grounds by Enrico Fermi
Enrico Fermi
Enrico Fermi was an Italian-born, naturalized American physicist particularly known for his work on the development of the first nuclear reactor, Chicago Pile-1, and for his contributions to the development of quantum theory, nuclear and particle physics, and statistical mechanics...
on December 2, 1942. Thus, it was dedicated at precisely 3:36 p.m. on December 2, 1967. The site of the first nuclear reaction received designation as a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
on February 18, 1965 and was added to the newly created National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
(NRHP) on October 15, 1966 as one of the original designated historic places. Chicago Pile-1 is one of four Chicago NRHPs on the original list. The site was named a Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark is a designation of the Mayor of Chicago and the Chicago City Council for historic buildings and other sites in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Listed sites are selected after meeting a combination of criteria, including historical, economic, architectural, artistic, cultural,...
on October 27, 1971.
A working model for Nuclear Energy ("Atom Piece (Working Model for Nuclear Energy) 1964-65") is on display at the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art
Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art
The Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art is an art museum founded in 1989. It is in Hijiyama Park in the Hiroshima City, Japan. The building was designed by architect Kisho Kurokawa.-Representative collections:-External links:*...
, Japan.