Atlanta Architect John Portman Has Final Sculpture On Display At Georgia Tech Posthumously

The great architect and artist John Portman was a significant influence on the look of Atlanta with his dozens of landmark buildings. He also excelled in sculpture and paintings, examples of which still adorn the interior spaces of his architecture. Before his passing in 2017 at the age of 93, the artist conceived one more ambitious final sculpture, which his faithful collaborators would go on to see completed this year. 

Portman’s final work, “Koan,” now has a permanent home on the campus of Georgia Tech, where Portman himself attended. It stands 40 feet tall, constructed over years in an adventurous alliance between a luxury bath company, a boat manufacturer, and supercomputers at the School of Aerospace Engineering at Georgia Tech. Portman’s lifelong collaborator Stanley Mickey Steinberg, along with President and Chief Design Officer at MTI Baths Russell Adams, joined “City Lights” Senior Producer Kim Drobes to talk about the grand project and how it honors the vision and philosophy of its designer.

Steinberg told the story of how Portman was called on to bring more art into the environment through which Georgia Tech’s students passed every day. The artist felt strongly that creativity should be an essential part of a serious engineer’s skill set, and brought that conviction to the new project. According to Steinberg, Portman said, “This piece has to talk to people. It’s got to mean something, it’s not just another meaningless sculpture.”