Orbit Tower

It’s now the end of July and progress on the Orbit Tower may seem slow if you are just looking for added bits to the top or the orbits when passing the Olympic Park by train or DLR but if you look more closely you will see that the silver spiral staircase is being welded into position inside or around the main load bearing tower construction. In real life it looks more like a grey spiral but hopefully that’s just the undercoat or something, and the finished staircase will be all shiny and silver. George Rex’s photograph below illustrates the silver spiral nicely:

Orbit Tower -ArcelorMittal Orbit

Image: George Rex

The silver grey 1,150ft spiral staircase will snake its way down from the top of the Orbit Tower. There is a lift shaft for the upward bound journey, although it has to be said that some people with ageing knee joints do find walking down steps harder work than walking up. The lift will be enclosed, with tiny windows restricting any exterior view. Two of the interior walls of the viewing platform will be mirrored – one convex, one concave – reflecting visitors at odd angles, even upside down. It won’t be until they walk down the silver staircase coiling around the sculpture that they will be able to appreciate the Orbit tower’s openness of design.

Work-in-progress July 2011 with part of the “silver spiral” staircase being assembled. Sculptor: Anish Kapoor, Structural Designer: Cecil Balmond, Architecture: Ushida Findlay Architects (UFA), Design and Engineering: Ove Arup. The controversial red tower, utlizing 30,000ft of steel tubing, will be 115m tall and completion is due in spring 2012. Project cost about 20million GBP. Olympic Park, London Borough of Newham.