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SALZGITTER EXTRA
THE BEAUTY OF BENDS
How Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen wrote art history – with the help of the Mülheim Pipe Bending Plant
In 1983, a roughly 11-meter-tall sculpture was erect- ed in Freiburg’s Eschholzpark: “The Garden Hose” by Claes Oldenburg (1929–2022) and Coosje van Brug- gen (1942–2009). It recalls the cluster of community gardens that once stood nearby and soon went down in art history as a pop art masterpiece. The in- stallation was an extraordinary success for the art- ists – but also for the Pipe Bending Plant at Salzgit- ter Mannesmann Grobblech GmbH in Mülheim an der Ruhr (see p. 36-37), which played a significant role in the sculpture’s creation. The elaborate pro- cess of producing this piece of art is documented in photographs in the Salzgitter AG archives.
In 1981, when the Kunstverein Freiburg inquired as to whether the competition-winning Oldenburg de- sign could actually be realized, the pipe-binding ex-
perts at Mannesmann were faced with a host of new challenges. Initial trials with a classic garden hose illustrated the unusual number of complicated curves, sometimes with extensive twisting. Space curves of that type had never been constructed be- fore in technical pipework construction. In fact, some machinery had to be reconstructed to accom- modate the ever-changing curvature radius.
All in all, 24 individual bends with a total length of around 130 m were implemented in HFI-welded steel pipes. Given the pipes’ external diameter of 508 mm and wall thickness of 11 mm, the Mülheim Pipe Bending Plant was the only option. Some curved sections were pre-assembled at the plant. Then, in early 1983, 15 elements were transported to Freiburg for final assembly.
“The Garden Hose”, a sculpture in Freiburg’s Eschholzpark, has been catching visitors’ eyes for 40 years 26
Photo: Andreas Schwarzkopf