Reincarnation of a structure: „Striatus“ staircase sculpture

Figure: Naaro / ZHA

The Giardino della Marinaressa garden with the temporarily erected „Striatus“ staircase sculpture

Figure: Naaro / ZHA

Stair treads made by a carpenter led across the sculpture; in the new version this will be made by concrete printing

Figure: Naaro / ZHA

Layout of the staircase sculpture

Figure: Naaro / ZHA

Section staircase

Figure: Naaro / ZHA

The printed concrete lines were not arranged horizontally but perpendicularly to the compressive forces finally acting on the structure. This allowed reducing the concrete consumption to 30 % of the regular demand

Figure: Naaro / ZHA

„Striatus“ was a crowd-puller

Figure: Naaro / ZHA

The „Striatus“ temporary staircase sculpture installed on last year‘s Biennale in Venice was a solid structure produced in a concrete 3D printing procedure with reduced material and could even be disassembled. In the near future, it will be rebuilt in an improved, permanent version in France. The complete article (in German language only) can be read in the „Beton Bauteile Jahrbuch 2023“ yearbook, which is available at the Profil bookstore of Bauverlag.

In Giardino della Marinaressa, an outdoor area situated south of the venue of the Venice Architecture Biennale, the staircase sculpture measuring 16 x 12 m was an extensive eye-catcher. The expressively flowing shapes unmistakably indicate the signature of its creative origin – namely the world-famous London-based Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) office, whose unforgotten founder of the same name passed away already six years ago.

The creators, Dr. Shajay Bhooshan of ZHA and Prof. Philippe Block of ETH Zurich, had christened the work „Striatus“. With the name, they wanted to refer to the structural...