Hoberman

Hoberman is a surname most often associated with Chuck Hoberman, an American sculptor and inventor known for kinetic art and transformable structures. Through Hoberman Designs, his studio, he has developed a range of transformable sculptures and products used in public art, architecture, education, and consumer design. He is best known for the Hoberman Sphere, an expandable geodesic-like sculpture that can morph from a compact form into a larger, stable sphere.

The structure is built from a network of interconnected joints and bars that rotate to enable expansion and contraction; the motion can be actuated by hand or automated systems. Hoberman's work emphasizes modularity, scalability, and user-driven transformation. In addition to the Sphere, he has produced other transformable sculptures, public installations for museums and science centers, and a line of educational and design objects.

His work has been shown in galleries and published in design and science literature; he has lectured internationally on transformable design and kinetic sculpture. Hoberman's contributions have influenced art, engineering, and design disciplines by demonstrating how mechanical linkages and modular components can create dynamic, interactive forms that retain structural integrity across scales. The Hoberman Sphere remains the best-known example of his approach to transformable sculpture and has been exhibited and licensed for various venues and applications worldwide.