Long Island City, NY
Sunbather
Scope/Solutions
Created by Ohad Meromi from cast silicon bronze and painted bright pink, the Sunbather enlivens Jackson Avenue in Long Island City. The artwork was commissioned by New York City’s Department of Cultural Affairs’ Percent for Art program, Department of Transportation, and Economic Development Corporation. SGH consulted on the sculpture’s structural design.
SGH evaluated the Sunbather’s thin-shelled structure for overall stability, strength, and deflections. Highlights of our work include the following:
- Used a three-dimensional scan of a scale model to create and discretize a surface appropriate for our finite element analysis software
- Determined the applicable loads on the 9 ft tall sculpture, including the self-weight of the 1/4 in. thick bronze casting, snow, wind, ice, and people
- Collaborated with the New York Art Foundry to obtain material properties, such as material yield point, behavior at welded joints, and fatigue resistance
- Designed the stainless steel anchor rods and baseplates in coordination with the engineer at the local department of transportation for the reinforced concrete base
- Provided stamped structural drawings for permitting
Project Summary
Solutions
New Construction
Services
Structures
Markets
Culture & Entertainment
Client(s)
Mr. Ohad Meromi
Key team members
Additional Projects
Northeast
Museum of Fine Arts Expansion
SGH consulted on the design and construction of the entire building enclosure, with the goal of providing reliable enclosure systems for controlling water leakage, moisture migration, and condensation.
Northeast
Clefs Moiré, One North of Boston
The interior installation, designed by Matt Trimble of Radlab, comprises two slatted walls using the moiré effect with segmented vertical ribbing. SGH provided structural engineering consulting services for the design of the walls.



