John Pawson: Perspectives
As part of St. Paul’s Cathedral’s tercentennial, the London Design Festival has invited British architect John Pawson to present ‘Perspectives’, a remarkable and original installation.
The installation, designed in collaboration with Swarovski, will be located within the Geometric Staircase in the Cathedral’s South West Tower. The staircase rises over 15 metres and consists of 88 steps, each stone slab supporting the next.
The intention is to turn this extraordinary spatial volume into its own viewing device. The installation will be a concave Swarovski crystal meniscus that will be located at the bottom of the stairwell. This lens will sit on a much larger reflective surface. A 2m wide spherical convex mirror will be suspended in the tower’s roof, directly over the hemisphere. Acting in concert, these optical devices will result in a fused image of the view up through the tower and an elevated downward perspective appearing to visitors who will be gathered round the hemisphere.
The installation at St Paul’s Cathedral will be available for view from Monday 19 – Friday 23 September 2011, during the London Design Festival.
