Although Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) is known mainly for its extraordinary contributions to science, including the discovery of the top quark, it is also remarkable for its art and architecture, largely designed by its first director Robert Rathbun Wilson (1914-2000). Wilson was not only a scientist and administrator but also a trained sculptor. Here are a few highlights, from photos I took on a visit in summer 2011:
Wilson Hall, the main building of Fermilab, looms like a giant “H” above the flat Illinois landscape.
The atrium of Wilson Hall climbs to the sky like an infinite ladder.
The sculpture “Mobius Strip,” designed by Robert Wilson, offers a wonderful intersection between science and art.