Playful sculpture created in collaboration with glass fabricator Cricursa to test the practical applications of emerging glass technology.

Wallpaper* Design Award 2018 – Best Descent

Vidre-Slide is a collaboration between glass fabricator Cricursa and Eckersley O’Callaghan. Using the latest in innovative techniques applied in the form of a four-metre-high triangulated glass structure with a nine-metre-long slide. 

Vidre-Slide maximises transparency, utilising long, tight-curvature glass and minimal, adhesive bonds without mechanical fixings.

The design consists of two long glass elements, propped against each other and tied together at their base by a steel structure. The annealed glass half-cylinders have a 450 millimetre radius and are fabricated as nine-metre-long pieces without splicing. The curved form of the glass is pivotal in realising the structure’s long spans.

The primary connections, ensuring the overall stability of the structure, are achieved with structural silicone only. The glass treads are bonded to the curved glass surface using TSSA. This adhesive provides an almost invisible bond, able to resist the shear load from the weight of a person ascending the structure. It is pioneering to use TSSA on a curved glass surface for a structural component.

The technique for forming long, tight-curvature glass was developed by Cricursa for a project in Hong Kong, in collaboration with Eckersley O’Callaghan. Vidre-Slide exemplifies a collaborative approach between engineers and fabricators that tests the practical application of emerging glass technologies.

Exhibited
GlassTec 2016, Messe Düsseldorf 

Collaborator
Cricursa