Diatom

The microcosm, magnified a thousandfold: Diatom by Tomas Medek

Three dome-like, finely pierced shells interlock to form an almost triangular overall structure – on the outside a coarse, radiating latticework that condenses towards the inside into an ever finer, cell-like structure of pores. “Diatom” immerses itself in the microcosm of diatoms. Diatoms are the main constituent of marine plankton and generate a large part of the oxygen in the Earth’s atmosphere. Natural diatoms range in size from a few micrometres to 2 millimetres – only through this extreme magnification into the sculptural does the complexity of these tiny organisms become visible, fascinating through their form and structure.

As in his works “Ulitospiral” and “Hermaphrodit”, in “Diatom” too Tomas Medek combines state-of-the-art technology with classical craftsmanship: the model was created on a 3D printer before a mould was taken from it in order to cast the delicate structure in pure fine silver. Only through this interplay of digital design and the traditional lost-wax casting process can such a complex, multi-layered lattice form be realised at all.
With a height, width and depth of 27 cm each and a weight of approximately 4.5 kg of fine silver, “Diatom” is one of the sculpturally most demanding works in the Medek programme at BullionArt. The edition is limited to 10 signed and numbered examples.

Please note: the silver price is subject to market fluctuations; the final sale price depends on the prevailing price of fine silver and is provided on request.