

89
Thomas Heatherwick
"Extrusion" bench
2012
Extruded aluminum.
29 1/8 x 52 3/4 x 22 in. (74 x 134 x 56 cm)
Produced by Heatherwick Studio, UK. Extrusion 3 from billet 7. Underside incised with Thomas Heatherwick/BILLET7 – EXTRUSION 3/JUNE 2012.
Full-Cataloguing
The present bench is the third extrusion by Thomas Heatherwick from a single billet of aluminum. Forced through a large die, the aluminum was cut into unique, unrepeatable sections and hand-polished. Waste from “Billet 7” was recycled for future extrusions. Heatherwick conceived his “Extrusion” benches over a twelve-year period dating from his coursework at the Royal College of Art, London. He had intended to create lengthy seating for public spaces such as airports and stations. The process of creating his “Extrusions” implies infinity. As Heatherwick states, he could conceivably produce a work that “reached around the planet to wherever it needed to go.”