Thenford Coanda

The brief for this private commission was for a major focal point within the splendid new walled garden that the client has been creating at Thenford.

This piece takes its name from Henri Coanda who has been called the 'father of fluid dynamics'; he was particularly intrigued by the way fluids cling to surfaces. This came to be called the Coanda effect - here demonstrated on an overhanging surface where the water is allowed to spill over the edge of the bowl and adhere to its underside, converging towards the central trunk. I first noted this phenomenon occurring on the two fountains in front of St Peters in Rome. See a video here

Two distinct features characterise the piece, the predominant one consisting of a large bronze dish held aloft upon a mirror polished stainless steel trunk. Water overflows this dish, clinging to its underside until diverted off the surface by
a circular hem which creates a ring of falling water around the trunk. The polished surface of the stainless steel trunk reflects the surrounding foliage and falling water, rendering it less substantial.

The other element of the feature consists of four smooth jets of water which leap from surrounding vessels up into the bowl, to feed the system.

See other work in the Coanda series here