POINT PLEASANT, W.Va. (WCHS) — Jon Parrack, of Mason County, loves working with his hands. The Point Pleasant insurance salesman restores cars, tractors and even motorcycles.
Is it any wonder that he was inspired by a Hollywood movie to try something else?
“I watched the movie ‘Fracture’ starring Anthony Hopkins,” Parrack explained. “In the movie there are two rolling ball sculptures and I was absolutely mesmerized by them.”
Rolling ball sculptures – sometimes called gravitrams or marble runs – are mesmerizing kinetic art installations where gravity propels balls through intricate, looping tracks, spirals and tipping arms.
Sometimes powered by motorized lifts, they recycle balls to the top for continuous motion.
Amazingly, eight years ago, Jon had never built anything similar but was able to teach himself how to solder the copper wire together. Eventually he made the switch to stainless steel which required welding, another skill Parrack taught himself to do.
“I spent about three weeks sitting at the bench trying to make two pieces of metal go together,” Parrack recalled. “I burned myself and caught the bench on fire, but eventually I got better at it and could do it consistently.”
To see his creations now you’d never know Parrack hadn’t done this his entire life. The impressive sculptures range in size from tabletop, to 3 feet tall all the way up to a large stainless steel creation that features an intricate tipping arm.
Not many people get to visit Jon’s garage and see his sculptures in person, but that changed recently when Parrack placed his largest rolling ball sculpture yet inside the The Point Pleasant Trading Company on Main Street.
The steampunk-themed behemoth (Parrack’s 30th project) measures 6 feet by 6 feet by 2 feet and weighs a whopping 300 pounds.
“I spent time at several antique stores and found old rheostats, tubes which were fun to light up, old scientific equipment and gauges,” Parrack said.
Reactions vary greatly to Parrack’s work. Some are simply captivated, while others hardly cast a fleeting glance.
“Some people are completely mesmerized and watch a sculpture run for 45 minutes while other say, ‘Yeah that’s nice’ and walk away, but everybody is different.” he said.
If you’re interested in purchasing or commissioning one of Jon’s rolling ball sculptures, you can visit his website and also follow him on Instagram.