The Arches of
Oman, a stunning water sculpture by Giles Rayner, is now situated in the pristine
new gardens adjacent to The Royal Opera House, Muscat. Commissioned by Muscat
Municipality and realised
by Giles’ team in Britain, it is a truly extraordinary work of art, offering
unique views from all surrounding approaches.
Officially commissioned in late
2015, this public sculpture project has
gone from vision to reality. The multi-national team who operated under the leadership
of the Commission Director, Julian Glyn-Owen, was primarily British. They also
utilised material and skills from Oman as well as from Finland, Germany and Italy,
making this a very international project.
Starting life in the UK, the sculpture was
developed by a trans-national group of 12 companies consisting of design engineers,
fabricators and specialists. Constructed of Duplex, the highest grade of stainless
steel, it was pre-polished in Birmingham, cut, formed and fabricated in Darwen.
It had the final trial assembly in Rotherham before being shipped to
Oman. The water and electrical systems hidden beneath the site were
designed and tested in the UK and installed in late 2016 in advance of the
arrival of the sculpture.
Arches sits above a 25m wide purpose built oval
pool and reaches 12m in height. Its design is formed of two entwined tusks
which curve around one another, with a flowing curtain of water arcing and
falling between them.
Giles Rayner, the sculpture's creator, is an
established figure in the world of water sculpture. His work can be found in
locations in North America and Europe in his imaginative and highly original
style.
Usually large in scale, Giles work uses copper, stainless
steel and bronze, giving a strong energy and sense of intrigue to his
aesthetically beautiful designs. As with all his work, Giles created this design
as a response to and sympathetic with its surroundings.
"The abstract sculpture was influenced by the
arch shape and by the Royal Opera House itself" explained Giles. "Movement
is provided by the variable water jets and also by its sinuous curves which
cause it to appear to rotate as you pass around it. It is the focal point of
the beautifully landscaped gardens in which it sits."
"It is stunning during the day but then provides
a very distinct vision at night through the careful placement of a series of submerged
lights in the pool beneath."
Work on the sculpture required thousands of
hours and co-ordination with civil engineers in Oman to ensure its safe
delivery to site in Muscat for assembly during June 2017. Julian Glyn-Owen
directed the final assembly outside The Royal Opera House. This took 22 days
and continued without pause through the Holy month of Ramadan and into Eid.
Across the project, teams from both Oman and the
UK have brought specialist skills to complete the work, including the road and sea
transport of the sculpture from Rotherham to Southampton to Muscat. This
required over 10 trucks across three locations, before four cranes were used to
assemble and lift the sculpture into its final position.
Work on the finer details of the piece including
the water pumps, hosing, lighting and infrastructure needed to allow the
sculpture to come to life are now complete. “Its final appearance is both
imposing and elegant, with its geometric shape enhanced by flowing water from over
sixty nozzles throughout the sculpture,” said Julian Glyn-Owen.
Surrounded by the beautifully designed gardens
and flanked by The Royal Opera House, The Arches of Oman represents a great
feat of teamwork and engineering. The project has reached its successful
conclusion; to realise a grand vision in a unique location for all of Muscat’s visitors
to enjoy.
For more information, visit www.archesoman.com
Ends
About Giles Rayner
Giles Rayner is a leading player in the world of water sculpture. His
unique designs can be seen in a number of gardens and public spaces across the
UK, and in a variety of international locations.
He specialises in using copper, stainless steel and bronze, often at a
large scale, to create imaginative and highly individual designs, which combine
energy and intrigue with simple aesthetic beauty. The use of moving water
empowers each design with real life, achieving sometimes a sense of the
dramatic; sometimes the more peaceful.
Giles' skill in working with individual and frequently historic
settings, ensures that each sculpture is a timeless element of its
architectural landscape or natural surroundings, a sensitivity which he regards
as a vital endeavour for each project.
Most sculptures are individual commissions, but limited editions or
variations on some of the existing designs can be made.
Giles studied at City and Guilds of London and at
Kingston, graduating in 2000. Since then he has followed a punishing schedule
to create yet more ambitious and original designs, to which end he has firmly
established himself as a leading player.
Working with his father Ranulf Rayner, a fellow
creative and accomplished artist, on several projects, has added to the ability
to make the impossible achievable. They still keep a close link in their
operations from Gloucestershire and Devon.
Water sculpture by Giles is not made just to be
both aesthetic and intriguing, but also to appear quite unbound by any decade
or period. To achieve eye-catching creations that can fit in with settings
often several hundred years old is a challenge to which he has set himself with
successful dedication. Giles is passionate about creating designs that are integral to their
setting and travels both nationally and internationally in order to install
pieces and to study sites for the conception of designs.
For
editorial enquiries, contact 0131 357 8977 or email pr@redheadpr.co.uk
Ends
Follow
redheadPR on Twitter and like them
on Facebook
Visit www.redheadpr.co.uk
Find
out more about founder and managing director, Sara Tye