The Beauty of Surgical Tubing

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When I first saw these stage images from the New York City Ballet the first question that came to mind is…What a cool idea!, but  how did they make that?  It turns out that there were “some 100 strings—actually 1/4-inch silicone surgical tubing—strung into the arched steel and aluminum framework constantly tremble and change color as dancers leap, turn, and tour jeté in front, behind, and through it.”  Surgical tubing, made from latex, has fantastic gripping power and elasticity.

A fabricator could form metal tubing into a number of whimsical shapes, drill small holes and lace surgical tubing in and out of the structure to create an ordered design like sculptor Santiago Calatrava’s sculptures or create a more random web like design.  Either way, I am sure you would have an interesting, and highly interactive structure that could easily morph.

Images and info from: http://www.calatrava.com/

Valerie C.

Valerie “Poly Georgette” has a passion for textiles and construction. She enjoys developing solutions utilizing a number of different substrates to dress a space. She has ten years of experience creating custom solutions and tracking down a plethora of amazing textiles, consistently dreaming up new ways to use them.

Poly Georgette (61 Posts)

Valerie "Poly Georgette" has a passion for textiles and construction. She enjoys developing solutions utilizing a number of different substrates to dress a space. She has ten years of experience creating custom solutions and tracking down a plethora of amazing textiles, consistently dreaming up new ways to use them.


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