Tetraeder

This has been another attraction in the Ruhr area since 1995: Halde Beckstraße (a mining waste tip) in Batenbrock has since been crowned by a ca. 60m tall triangular steel pyramid (tetrahedron; German: Tetraeder). Visible from very far away, it has become a sort of landmark of the region. Illuminated by night, it is a real “lighting event” and seems to hover over the Ruhr area when the tip of the pyramid is transformed into a spatial sign of light consisting of green and yellow bands of light.
The Beckstraße tip in Bottrop is one of the largest in the Ruhr area. Its enormous height of 60m made it the obvious site for a “tip event” of a special kind: the “Tetraeder”, a triangular pyramid designed by architect Wolfgang Christ as an observation platform. Visible from the faraway and striking in its reduced design, it has become a real landmark, for both the people in the region and for visitors. The 50m tall steel structure rests on four pillars above the ground, which is what lends it its “hovering” position when seen from afar and despite its massive weight. The “surrealist” impression the landscape of the tip leaves is taken up by the pyramid, which is, after all, not massive but rather filigree and transparent. It is also a mathematical play on the triangular form, symbolically reflecting the tip’s basic shape and idealising it as a pyramid. The landscape’s artificiality is made an artistic motif: The raising of the steel pipe elements of the structure, which in turn form the pyramid, repeat the process of evenly raising the tip. From afar, the pyramid is a unique landmark among all the industrial towers. The closer you get, the more differentiated the picture becomes until you finally perceive it as a walkable sculpture. However, at the foot of the pyramid, you then get another impression again, as you now view the details, the tangled web of diagonal and horizontal steel pipes that hold this gigantic space frame together. Architect Wolfgang Christ wanted to “preserve this space as a structure to be experienced”.
At night, the “tip event” becomes a “lighting event”, transforming the tip of the pyramid in a spatial sign of light consisting of green and yellow bands of light. Dusseldorf-based artist Jürgen LIT Fischer has used the geometrical message of the “Tetraeder”.

Author: Route Industriekultur/ Redaktion baukunst-nrw
Last changed on 11.04.2024

Categories:
Engineering » Structure