Blow & Roll by Oskar Zieta

Oskar Zieta created a large-scale installation in the V&A's John Madejski Garden, named Blow & Roll, using a technique developed by Zieta's company Prozessdesign which used compressed air to inflate steel. Zieta’s work is largely based on his own FiDU technology, a method of turning CAD drawings into 3D objects by literally inflating them with air. Though there’s a playfulness about his work, what lies behind it is an ambitious attempt to kick-start an entirely new production process. FiDU technology process means that two shapes cut from steel sheets are welded along their edges and then inflated under high pressure into a 3D object. Blow & Roll was made of large-scale steel elements of different lengths up to 20m and of different heights. The challenge was to bring it to the garden in one piece, like all the other pieces of the Museum’s exhibition. To achieve it, pieces were transported to London and brought to the garden flat and rolled, and then they were inflated with air to the final shape. Looping gracefully across the fountail, the high gloss steel of the installation reflected the shape of the stairs leading to the garden's pool. Supported by the Polish Cultural Institute.