Jacob's Ladder

Shortlisted for small projects of between £1-3 million. Awarded for excellence in the structural design of projects with a construction cost of between one and three million pounds, including art structures and sculptures. post

The design used a single CAD model from which STL data for 3D printing of scale models, geometry for finite element analysis, and final cutting instructions were generated in a single-step process. This efficient workflow enabled an iterative process where over 40 different designs were produced and evaluated to finesse the final result.

The judges were immediately impressed by the ambition of this sculpture and the powerful impact it has in the landscape. The structural engineering design has been very well integrated into the artistry of the object.

Digital design allowed every layer to be of a different size and shape. The assembly into the whole was well conceived and executed to achieve a seamless whole. The structural engineering design is an integral part of the artistry of this sculpture, and provides an excellent example of the value of intelligent structural engineering in the co-creation of art.

Gibbs Farm is a thousand-acre open-air sculpture park in Kaipara Harbour, near Auckland on the North Island of New Zealand. It features over thirty monumental sculptures from a roll-call of top international contemporary artists including Richard Serra, Anish Kapoor and Andy Goldsworthy. post

Jacob's Ladder has been depicted in many artworks, the largest of which is the facade of Bath Abbey in England where sculptures depict angels climbing up and down ladders on either side of the main window on the west front. wikipedia

Bruno Postle brought this work to my attention. He is part of the engineering firm that executed the work. We know him more for his Pattern Homemaker which we have studied. twitter