Local News in Brief : Costa Mesa : Delicate Art Challenge? They’ve Got It Eggsactly

Art students at Orange Coast College are preparing for an unusual assignment for next Monday: dropping specially packaged raw eggs from a 60-foot elevation and seeing how many remain intact.

The students are enrolled in Prof. Karen Mortillaro’s three-dimensional-design art class. Students have been asked to design heavily cushioned “re-entry vehicles” for the eggs, then to drop the vehicles from the top of the college’s library.

The students’ re-entry vehicles for eggs may be no larger than 6 inches square. Awards are given to students whose eggs survive the drop.

Mortillaro said the assignment challenges art students. “It forces students to think creatively about a solution,” she said. “The packages (for the eggs) must be attractive as well as functional. . . . We’re looking for grace and beauty as well as utility.”