carsten höller to open world’s longest tunnel slide at anish kapoor's arcelormittal orbit

carsten höller to open world’s longest tunnel slide at anish kapoor’s arcelormittal orbit
(above) image courtesy of bblur architecture

tickets are now on sale for the carsten höller-designed slide at the arcelormittal orbit — part of the queen elizabeth olympic park in stratford, london. earlier this year, it was announced that the UK’s tallest public artwork — realized by anish kapoor back in 2012 — would host a 178 meter (584 feet) tunnel slide, wrapping around the steep curves of the sculpture. with an opening date now set for june 24, 2016, visitors can ready themselves for the 40-second trip down the arcelormittal, orbiting the structure 12 times and observing panoramic views of london’s dramatic cityscape. as they pass through light and dark sections of the tube, participants funnel through a tight corkscrew section named the ‘bettfeder’ (after the german word for ‘bedspring’), which ends with a 15 storey straight run back down to earth.

the slide orbits the structure 12 times and offers panoramic views of london’s cityscape
image courtesy of arcelormittal orbit

construction and planning on the project is overseen by london-based firm bblur architecture. following the recent reveal of its opening date, arcelormittal orbit has released a behind-the-scenes look at the building work being carried out as the tunnel slide nears completion. see the video below.

a 178 meter (584 feet) tunnel slide wraps around the steep curves of the anish kapoor-designed sculpture
image courtesy of arcelormittal orbit 

a tight corkscrew section named the ‘bettfeder’ ends with a 15 story straight run back down to earth
image courtesy of arcelormittal orbit

behind the scenes at the construction of the slide at the arcelormittal orbit
video courtesy of queen elizabeth olympic park

construction work begins on the slide at the arcelormittal orbit
image courtesy of queen elizabeth olympic park

an opening date for the tunnel slide has now been set for june 24, 2016
image courtesy of queen elizabeth olympic park