Artist Monica Bonvicini has created one of the largest works of art for the 2012 Olympic Games. The staggered row of three shiny giant letters – 9m high, 5m wide, 1.2m deep – in London’s Olympic Park spell out the word “RUN” and reflect their surroundings like a mirror during the day, blend in with them and reflect the observer. At night more than 8,000 LEDs illuminate the letters.
Once again, here is a project in which sedak could demonstrate its design and glass finishing skills right down to the tiniest detail. The artist wanted the letters to become part of their surroundings. The surfaces of the sculpture therefore had to be smooth and virtually seamless, which pushed the engineers to the limit of the technically feasible in terms of the dimensions of the panes. Low-iron glass with an ipachrome coating has been used for the front and rear of each letter.
To create a surface of maximum homogeneity, sedak needed a bespoke solution: so both glass and stainless steel are fixed to the supporting framework by a concealed mounting system.
During the day, park-goers experience the reflective surface of this monumental sculpture, but at night the letters appear in a blaze of light. In the dark, the high-power LED lighting strips undergo a double reflection: in the coated outer pane and also in a mirror made from an aluminium composite which is mounted on the supporting steelwork.
The RUN project is another example of how sedak, with its own high standards of quality and precision, can easily match the exceptional demands of art projects, too.
