Thomas Heatherwick’s Gorgeous Recycled Traffic Cone Canopy Greets Visitors to London’s Victoria & Albert Museum

Greeting guests outside the historic and beautiful <a href="http://www.vam.ac.uk" target="_blank">Victoria &amp; Albert Museum</a> in London is a gorgeous white canopy made from recycled <a href="http://inhabitat.com/ultra-mod-cone-light-made-from-recycled-traffic-cones/">traffic cones</a>! Installed as part of <a href="http://inhabitat.com/how-green-is-the-2012-olympic-cauldron-designed-by-thomas-heatherwick/" target="_blank">Heatherwick Studio</a>'s “Designing the Extraordinary” exhibition, the white cones are arranged in hanging points, creating a three-dimensional marquee over the museum’s <a href="http://inhabitat.com/gigantic-timber-wave-installation-welcomes-the-london-design-festival-to-va/" target="_blank">Cromwell Road entrance</a>. The piece is part hanging sculpture and part canopy, protecting visitors from the London rain.

<a href="http://www.heatherwick.com/" target="_blank">Heatherwick Studio</a>'s arched traffic cone canopy hangs like a chandelier, adorning the ornate Victorian stone façade of the South Kensington Museum.

The site-specific installation was designed in conjunction with UK-based stainless steel solutions group <a href="http://www.s3i.co.uk/" target="_blank">S3i</a>.

S31’s oxidized steel frame holds the strings of stainless steel wire rope which support the structure, creating a curvilinear field of hanging cones.

With each corner held taut, the canopy dips in the center, like architectural hanging chain models.

Protruding toward the ground and <a href="http://inhabitat.com/construction-complete-on-the-uks-stunning-seed-cathedral/" target="_blank">fanning in every direction</a>, the <a href="http://inhabitat.com/ultra-mod-cone-light-made-from-recycled-traffic-cones/" target="_blank">traffic cones</a> are transformed from their utilitarian purpose into plastic stalactites.

Instead of safety orange, Heatherwick painted the 208 cones white. Retaining one safety detail, each cone is wrapped with a reflective band that glistens in the sunlight.

The installation casts a mosaic of diamond shadows on the ground and against the museum’s grand entrance.

With the simple yet eye catching installation, Heatherwick takes a common object out of its usual environment, removing it from its utilitarian context and exploring new possibilities for the object’s design. “Designing the Extraordinary” is a special exhibition on display at the Victoria &amp; Albert Museum until September 30th.