Leaver, who was appointed by Tate Modern to oversee the construction of the exhibit, brought Unusual Rigging on board to help develop a solution and to fulfil Tuttle's idea that those visiting the exhibition should "...feel like they're in heaven".
Leon Ingram, production rigger at Unusual, said, "This was certainly an unusual project - even for us. The rigging had to be almost invisible - firstly because it was vital that the technology holding the artwork in place didn't overshadow the hanging exhibit and secondly because the brief demanded that the piece appeared to be floating in air. Happily our wealth of experience in combining safety with optical illusions and working with pieces of art and historic artefacts stood us in good stead."
Working with Jim, Leon and his team installed a hoist to the existing roof beams of the Turbine Hall and lifted 52cm Eurotruss to a working height. They then secured the lifting hoist for the piece and all dead hang brackets. Once this was done, the truss was lifted out just under the roof beams of the turbine hall and dead hung.
"With all the kit in place, the sections were brought in and assembled for us to lift. We stack built the artwork, lifting it when required. There's always that added adrenalin when you know you're handling a one-off masterpiece," said Leon.
Once all the work was complete, Unusual's team raised the sections to their final positions and suspended them on black wire to create the floating appearance. While reviews of the sculpture by critics have been mixed, Jim commented, "For me it really doesn't matter what people think of the art. The process of making the exhibit possible created a fantastic atmosphere through the dedicated work of some exceptionally talented people."
He concluded, "Unusual Rigging was able to bring a wealth of experience in art installation to a project which required not just expertise but also the ability to dovetail into the artistic process. This piece evolved as it was installed and Leon's team were always engaged, flexible and responsive."
(Jim Evans)
