The staircase has a total mosaic area of 700 square meters, with more than 5 million hand-cut mosaic stones baked and cut into unique mosaic tiles using traditional methods in a small village in Italy. These tiles were laid one by one by hand to create ‘The Stairway To Unity.’ The stairwell should represent unity.
Tomorrowland‘s creative team collaborated with international artists such as Parisian mosaic expert Jean-Christophe Duperron, Cuban artist Michel Herrera Cuello, and Italian company Mosaici Moruzzi to create the stunning staircase.
There are approximately 5 million pieces in this mosaic. It’s not as easy as taking a piece and placing it just like that. We first take a piece which we cut and adjust until we get the perfect little piece to fit in the mosaic. One person works on one piece, so 5 million pieces means endless hours of work. Let’s say this project represents approximately 15.000 hours of work. – Jean-Christophe Duperron
This project isn’t just a decorative project. The most important is not the beauty of the stairway but the message that it delivers: the path to save our planet begins with tolerance and a respectful dialogue between each other. – Michel Herrera Cuello
The stairwell will be De Schorre’s third permanent art installation. The ‘One World Bridge‘ was built by Arne Quinze in 2014, and Thomas Dambo’s ‘Magical Troll Forest‘ was completed in 2019.
The magnificent mosaic in detail:
- 5 million hand-cut mosaic stones
- 700 square meters of surface area
- Length of stairs: 60 meters
- 20 mosaicists
- 15.000 hours of work
- More than 3 years to go from idea to reality
- 8 months of baking and shredding in Italy
- More than 6 months of laying mosaic tiles
- 5 months of building and installation work in De Schorre in Boom (Belgium)
Tomorrowland has also unveiled the full lineup timetable for the 2022 festival.
