'Ominous Ikon #6 and Yaddo Study'

Two nuclear-themed sculptures sit nested in Babson College’s Wellesley campus. These two pieces stand covertly without a placard or information other than the artist’s name and year, “Kowal ‘76” welded in. 

These two pieces—”Ominous Ikon #6 and Yaddo Study”—are pieces by prominent sculptor Dennis Kowal. Kowal’s sculptures are created at the intersection of science and technology, and these two pieces are no exception.

Kowal’s sculptures are designed to resemble mushroom clouds, capturing their terror and beauty. Kowal references the terror he felt as a child watching a test explosion in a movie theatre and wants these pieces to capture that same feeling. 

As Kowal himself said, “The pieces are solid, they will outlive all of us.”