-Tesla Coil- high-frequency discharge demonstrator 1931

Nikola Tesla created this high-frequency discharge demonstrator, now at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, as a hands-on illustration of electrical principles. There's something beautiful about the materials he chose: the rich gleam of the copper coil against the stark, matte black of the frame. It's a study in contrasts – smooth versus textured, conductor against insulator. Look closely at how the copper is wound, each loop perfectly spaced, almost as if it were drawn. I love how you can trace the energy's potential path, jumping across the gap between the two spheres. It reminds me that art, like science, is a process of discovery, an ongoing experiment. Tesla's coil isn't just a device; it's a sculpture of an idea. It makes me think of Sol LeWitt, who similarly wanted to lay bare the underlying structure of things. Art and science, they’re not so different.