Art of Engineering Workshop, 2014
Completed as part of the "Art of Engineering" workshop, this project involved the design and fabrication of a 1.3-meter-high tensegrity structure. Tensegrity (tensional integrity) relies on isolated components in compression inside a net of continuous tension, creating the visual illusion that the structural elements are floating in space.
Bahareh’s design comprises four stable glass pyramids that interconnect to form a complex central node. The sculpture utilizes 16 glass tubes as compression members and 60 cables as tension members. To ensure structural integrity, each glass tube is pre-stressed with an internal steel bar and capped with pin-ended stainless steel fittings.
The technical assembly required high precision; thicker rings attached to the tube ends guide the cables through specific openings to maintain equilibrium. By using glass as the primary compression material, the project highlights the interplay of transparency and tension, resulting in a lightweight structure that appears to defy gravity while maintaining complete stability.