Tonkin Liu reveals its 14m high steel flower on the banks of the River Mersey

A giant wind-powered metallic flower has been unveiled on the banks of the River Mersey.

The Future Flower sculpture, designed by Tonkin Lui, rises 14 m above ground and is 4.5 m in diameter.

Constructed out of triangles and pentagons, the steel structural frame has 120 perforate galvanised mild steel petals fixed to it.

Sixty low voltage LED lights are powered by three mini wind turbines when winds reach 5 miles an hour.

The sculpture, in Widnes, Cheshire, was built by sustainability engineers XCO2, structural engineers Eckersley O鈥機allaghan, and art fabricators Mike Smith Studiohave.

It was commissioned as part of the wider Widnes Waterfront environmental uplift and public art programme, following an international competition held in 2007.

The project is funded by the North West Development Agency as part of a wider Waterfront Regeneration Programme to the clean up of the vacant, polluted riverfront land.

Topics