heatherwick studio: 2012 london olympics cauldron
2012 london olympics cauldron designed by thomas heatherwick
lighting rehearsal – starting point from which the torch bearers ignite the cauldron
image: LOCOG / olympic opening ceremony tumblr
the highly anticipated 2012 olympics cauldron designed by thomas heatherwick was finally revealed at yesterday’s opening ceremony. the dandelion-like design, is composed from 204 petals (each representing a competing nation), which are attached to levered stems that pump natural gas to each petal. the stems gently rise from the ground upwards and converge to form ‘one great flame of unity’ – representative of the transitory togetherness that is embodied in the olympic games.
the london 2012 olympic cauldron being lit
video via
2012 london olympics cauldron – lighting rehearsal – stems which pump natural gas to the petals rising upward
image: LOCOG / olympic opening ceremony tumblr
2012 london olympics cauldron – lighting rehearsal – the flaming petals converge to form one united flame
image: LOCOG / olympic opening ceremony tumblr
2012 london olympics cauldron – by thomas heatherwick
image: LOCOG / olympic opening ceremony tumblr
heatherwick’s cauldron will be moved within the stadium to where the opening ceremony bell was, a reference to the position of the cauldron at the 1948 london games. at the end of the games, each team will take their petal home and the london 2012 cauldron will cease to exist.
2012 london olympics cauldron – each of the 204 copper petals represents one of the competing nations
image: LOCOG / olympic opening ceremony tumblr
2012 london olympics cauldron – each of the 204 copper petals are inscribed with the name of the country and ‘the XXX olympiad – london 2012”
image: LOCOG / olympic opening ceremony tumblr
2012 london olympics cauldron – the mechanism which lifts the stems
image: LOCOG / olympic opening ceremony tumblr
‘we were aware cauldrons had been getting bigger, higher, fatter as each olympics happened and we felt we shouldn’t try to be even bigger than the last ones. this incredible event has 204 nations coming together, so we had a child from each country bringing these copper polished objects in. at the end of the games, this cauldron will dismantle itself and radiate back down to the ground and each of those copper pieces take away by each nation and put in their national olympic cabinet.’ – thomas heatherwick
floor plan / level 0
image © heatherwick studio
elevation
image © heatherwick studio
thomas heatherwick
image © rosie hallam
olympic cauldrons of years past
top row: 1976 (montreal, canada); 2010 (vancouver, canada); 2004 (athens, greece)
bottom: 2002 (salt lake city, USA); 2000 (sydney, australia); 1992 (barcelona, spain)
‘thomas heatherwick: making‘ by thomas heatherwick is published by thames & hudson on 28 may 2012, £38.00 plc
‘heatherwick studio: designing the extraordinary’, sponsored by ernst & young, will be at the V&A from 31 may – 30 september 2012
london 2012 olympics (47 articles)
zaha hadid opens london aquatics centre to the public
house of flags an installation celebrating multicultural london
serie architects: BMW group pavilion, london
london 2012 olympic velodrome animation by chemical brothers + crystal CG
london 2012 olympic tree rings
offcut speedo swimsuit dress unity by from somewhere
thomas heatherwick (70 articles)
heatherwick studio designs maggie's centre in leeds as a group of three large-scale planters
sidewalk labs scraps toronto neighborhood with buildings by snøhetta + heatherwick studio
heatherwick studio's construction of 'little island' pier in NYC captured in new images
torch design (3 articles)
tokujin yoshioka designs 'cherry blossom' olympic torch for tokyo 2020
london olympic torch by barber osgerby wins design of the year 2012
design news
yen-hao, chu combines clean lines and solid wood to design the muzhi cupboard
#design
perfect for storing table and kitchenware, the cupboard is available in american ash or american black walnut.
perfect for storing table and kitchenware, the cupboard is available in american ash or american black walnut.
traditional chinese cooling fan meets luminaire design in 'ogi lamp' by yen-hao, chu
#design
when the light shines through the glass lampshade, the luminaire appears like a fuller, three-dimensional tuan fan.
when the light shines through the glass lampshade, the luminaire appears like a fuller, three-dimensional tuan fan.
NASA's eau de space, a perfume that smells just like space
#design
some astronauts have described the smell of space as ‘seared steak, raspberries and rum.’
some astronauts have described the smell of space as ‘seared steak, raspberries and rum.’
'island' is a driverless social-distancing tram designed for hong kong
#design
large circular benches facilitate social distancing within the tram interior, and passengers sit facing outwards in a radial pattern.
large circular benches facilitate social distancing within the tram interior, and passengers sit facing outwards in a radial pattern.
Maybe its a lil selfish but its a shame that the nations will take their petal home. This means the Britains who desperately wanted to watch the games as spectators and didn’t get ceremony tickets will never get to see it in person.
I really want to know what the material it is,how could such long stick stay straight,when putting flat.
Tout simplement magnifique !
@andrea : heatherwick’s cauldron will be moved within the stadium to where the opening ceremony bell
was, a reference to the position of the cauldron at the 1948 london games. at the end of the games,
each team will take their petal home and the london 2012 cauldron will cease to exist.
spectacular. but how are they going to move it from the middle of the field before it is struck from a javelin?