Buckminster Fuller : Father Of The Geodesic Dome
Inventor, visionary & credited with popularizing the geodesic dome structure.
Buckminster fuller (July 12, 1895 – July 1, 1983) from Milton, Massachusetts, was an inventor, visionary, free thinker and problem solver. He dedicated his life to making the world work for all of humanity.
Fuller did not limit himself to one field but did a comprehensive study and world inventory of human trends and needs with an aim to develop technology that did more with less. He set out to solve global problems and spent his life working across multiple fields, such as architecture,transportation, geometry, engineering, science, education and energy. One of Fuller’s lifelong interests was using technology to revolutionize construction and improve human housing. He is best known for the development of the geodesic dome.
1927 was a pivotal year for Fuller. At age 32 after a failed business venture and other unfortunate events he found himself penniless and contemplated suicide by drowning in Lake Michigan. In his ‘dark night of the soul’ he experienced a profound incident which would transform his life and his overall perception forever. During the incident, time appeared to stop while he listened to a voice speaking directly to him. The voice declared,
“You do not have the right to eliminate yourself. You do not belong to you. You belong to Universe. Your significance will remain forever obscure to you, but you may assume that you are fulfilling your role if you apply yourself to converting your experiences to the highest advantage of others.”
Fuller made a conscious decision to re-examined his priorities in life, and ultimately decided to embark on a lifelong ‘experiment’ making himself a scientific ‘guinea pig’ to determine how much positive influence one average person could have on the world. From that moment forward, Bucky committed himself to doing his own thinking and to rigorously questioning everything he had previously been taught to believe. It was a radical divergence from the status quo that he referred to as ‘the game’. He no longer sought income or personal recognition but operated out of faith that provision would be provided. He recounted miracle after miracle of impossible things happening, of things he needed showing up at the last critical moment when he needed it. He stated, “During all these last 56 years I have been unable to budget. I simply have to have faith and just when I need the right-something for the right-reasoning, there it is — the workshops, helping hands, materials, ideas, money, tools”. Over time, his hypothesis began to prove itself as the bumps in the road got smoother and his faith in the integrity of his mission grew.
Speaking to audiences later in life, Fuller would regularly recount the story of his Lake Michigan experience, and its transformative impact on his life
comic by Stuart McMillen
Buckminster Fuller’s Chilling Domes