Walk-in giant head with Webnet and ropes
Initial situation and concept:
The giant head at the Kunsthaus Zurich is a walk-in sculpture called “Zardoz,” which has been standing in the Kunsthaus garden since September 2025. The imposing head sculpture is about eight meters high and can be climbed.
Based on a clay model by British artist Monster Chetwynd, the ETH employees Andrei Jipa and Angela Yoo (Institute for Technology in Architecture) developed a structure made of wood, steel, concrete, and climbing nets. The result is a hybrid work that combines art, architecture, and play space.
Inside the sculpture is a hanging climbing structure (made of Webnet and fiber rope nets), with a viewing platform at the top and a slide leading back down. Visitors can climb up to a height of eight meters via the hourglass-shaped climbing structure, with four platforms providing rest stops along the way.
Construction and implementation:
Jakob Rope Systems was commissioned to help design, manufacture, and install the surrounding fall protection system made of stainless steel Webnet and ropes (with swaged clevises) for suspension in Zurich. Our client for this project was Motorsänger GmbH (from Männedorf), which planned and installed the climbing frame inside the giant head.
Jakob products and services:
- Consulting, finding solutions for the design and manufacture of ropes and Webnet
- Webnet with sleeves, mesh size 40 mm, rope Ø 1.5 mm
- Vertical strand ropes 6x7+WC, Ø 8 mm with Classic clevis (on one side) and turnbuckle with Classic M12 clevis (on the other side)
- All ropes were delivered in advance for the assembly of the structure, and the Webnet elements were installed by Jakob Rope Systems
