If you’ve ever wondered how long it takes a 10-ton ice cube to melt down to a tepid puddle, a Seattle installation will soon reveal the answer. As City Lab reports, ICE CUBE will be appearing in Occidental Square today, Friday, September 9.
The public art piece is the work of Olson Kundig, an architecture firm based in the city. Their latest project is meant to evoke the stages of the natural water cycle, slowly melting and evaporating as time progresses.
The massive ice block is being installed just in time for the Seattle Design Festival, which runs from September 10 to 23. The designers write on Instagram, “Over the course of the festival the ice will shift from opaque to translucent, offering a cool respite to visitors and scattering ambient sunlight and colors throughout Occidental Park.”
There’s a chance the exhibit, or part of it anyway, will remain in the square even after the festival has ended. Seven hours is barely enough time to melt a 300-pound ice chunk in triple-digit heat. The Seattle ice cube weighs around 66 times that and will benefit from much milder temperatures.
[h/t City Lab]
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September 9, 2016 – 9:00am