The Farm - Anish Kapoor

Structurflex Ltd., Henderson, Auckland, New Zealand

The purpose of the project was to design, fabricate and install a tensioned membrane sculpture, as defined by Anish Kapoor, to provide a permanent horizontally supported work of art to complement an outdoor art gallery. It is the first outdoor Kapoor sculpture of its kind, designed to withstand all loads as a permanent structure.

The sculpture was fabricated in Ferrari 1302-S series PVC fabric in a deep red custom color. Two identical structural steel ellipses support the fabric span of 280' with a self-weight of 16,000 pounds. The major axis of the ellipse is 80' and minor axis 40', with each ellipse weighing 95,000 pounds. The ellipses are orientated one horizontal and the other vertical. Thirty-two longitudinal mono filament cables provide displacement and deflection resistant to wind loads while assisting with the fabric transition—from horizontal ellipse, to a perfect circle at midspan, through to the vertical ellipse at the other end. The sculpture, which passes through a specifically cut hillside, provides a kaleidoscopic view of the beautiful Kaipara Harbor at the vertical ellipse and the hand contoured rolling valleys and hills from the horizontal ellipse.

The structural goal was to design an end-supported horizontal tension membrane structure capable of withstanding the high topographical terrain exposure coefficients integrated by wind from the Tasman Sea. A significant design consideration was to ensure stability of the fabric structure under all load conditions and material creep over time, to prevent fatigue failure of the fabric and cable connection to the ellipse and to the foundation.