Iowa State students will be invited to participate in an “unveiling” of a sculpture Wednesday in the atrium of the Design Center beginning at 10 a.m.

Ingrid Lilligren, assistant professor in ceramics in the department of art and design, created the sculpture called “Dis/covery: A Work of Art.” She expects several hundred people to show up.

The sculpture, which is being funded with an ISU Research Grant, is five feet by five feet by four feet and is made of clay on a wooden base. Thousands of tiles create a mantle around the centerpiece of the sculpture.

“Viewers will have to work to see it by taking tiles away from the piece,” Lilligren said. “I want everyone who comes to remove all the disks.”

The disks that surround the sculpture are clay deposits that Lilligren found along a creek near the Des Moines River. The deposits were left there during the floods of 1993.

Lilligren said the centerpiece of the sculpture is also made of clay. She said she is creating a situation that is “analogous to a voyage of discovery.”

“The center houses six openings with clay tubes that are brilliantly colored,” Lilligren said. “At the end of the tube are dried materials that have a smell.”

Some of those smells include lavender and mint.

“I’m interested in the sense of smell because it has a connection to emotions and sense,” she said.

Lilligren started making sculptures on a smaller scale, making functional pots such as glasses and bowls. She thought of these as being interactive because you can touch them and drink from them.

A computerized camera will be there to photograph people as they experience Lilligren’s artwork. People can also write their reactions to the piece and get a computer printout of their photos and comments.

Lilligren will compile the reactions in a report that will be distributed to artists, writers and galleries throughout the country.

“Dis/covery: A Work of Art” has been on display since Monday and Lilligren has been very excited about the response so far.

“It gives people a sense of wonder and an expanded sense of what art can do,” Lilligren said.

The sculpture is expected to remain in the atrium through Friday.