After several years of working there, I had enough experience with quirks of the space, and I had already worked on the practice rooms adjacent to the 5th Avenue tunnel, so they asked me to build the new shop underneath the stage. The new space, while being more accessible to the stage, has its own limitations. Everything in the shop is either anchored into the wall to create the maximum amount of usable space, or on wheels in order to create the most flexible space, as it is put to use by all departments.

Luke led the crew to implement the design between regular scenic building assignments, and timed major milestones of the renovation so as not to hamper production of those shows.

The challenge with this project is staying true to the original 3-D object while making it feasible for the stage. Though CAD programs can deal with a 3-D image, they can’t plot material thickness and how that interacts on a curve, so you have to have the instinct to blend it in an organic way while keeping to specific measurements, and ensuring that it is symmetrical. The shape of an airplane is familiar and extremely complicated to reproduce, so there are challenges in making it a believable object.

This applies to the movements of the propellers, as well. They must move, but not generate lift. They must also be lightweight enough to speed up and slow down easily, strong enough to hold together, but fragile enough not to harm any performers if they were to come in contact with the blades.

The wings were bolted to the fuselage, which had to be completely self-supporting. Two weeks were spent sanding and polishing the wings to create the smooth, regular curves.

Bruce Warshaw describes the process of building the aircraft:

As a true working lead, it was Luke’s dual responsibility to manage the crews for various portions of the airplane, while remaining personally responsible for the blending of the shapes and fine details of this featured centerpiece for Amelia.

Research and design required fifty drawings, 130 plates, and 2 period books on aircraft mechanics.

Luke led a team of skilled metal fabricators, who worked side by side with aircraft mechanics to fabricate new maintenance doors for the trains. The latches, control arms, and hinge systems needed to remain correct to the original, using materials and techniques not commonly in use anymore, such as Duralum, an obsolete aluminum alloy used in manufacturing zeppelins.

Luke also served in the role of Assistant Business Agent for this project, making it possible to bring more skilled IA builders to the crew.

Links:

• Seattle Monorail Website
• Seattle Times Article

Weight and the overall density of this sculpture was a huge concern, so we chose aluminum, which is not the most forgiving material for building sculpture with smaller, flexible pieces like this.

Links

• Artdish: Sarah Sze at McCaw Hall Permanent Installation

Since we started working with Sarah, the detail of her work has evolved because of what we showed her about what the materials can handle if we put them together in particular ways. This was the first time we fabricated the “found” objects she is fond of using in her work.

This was the project that made me very good at TIG welding; we were fabricating 16th-inch, laser-cut suspension bridges and truss to create models of cranes that support the sculpture from above.

Installation of the sculpture involved both structural welding, rigging, and rock climbing. Sarah designs her sculptures to fit into a space, and waterfall motion of the piece meant a lot of climbing and traversing the ceiling to mount the hangers and rappelling to access attachment points between sections of the sculpture.

Links

• Milton Academy News

With the success of Mythbusters and other similar building shows, a local production company that usually made National Geographic specials decided to try the hand at a building show. As a result of the audition, new roles were actually created for George and me, so we got to exercise our creativity building objects with pyrotechnic effects to throw, giving us a flaming playground – that kind of thing doesn’t happen very often.

We made a metal lathe out of a mag drill and custom stands in order to put a 3-foot long taper on a 3-inch staff. We experimented a lot with fuel mixes in order to keep objects alight in flight. It was a constantly-engaging project in that we had no supervision, and all they desired was spectacle. Since I had experience working with directors and producers, I was able to collaborate with them and expand on ideas. A lot of great pieces came from that.

The challenge was being an advocate for safety on a project where the producers and staff didn’t have frame of reference for the materials and tools that the build teams were using. This became a somewhat contentious point, which provided some reality show drama for the camera, but the team’s concern for safety was genuine.

The show aired in July of 2004, and can be found on Netflix.

Projectiles included:

• a geodesic dome lined with canon fuse and ping pong balls
• a 12-foot replica of the Seattle Space Needle
• half a dozen flammable pianos
• an exploding Opel Cadet