Because a plan for getting the piece to the park isn't final, the cost hasn't been determined. In the months since the project was announced, engineers have been modifying the parking garage designs to accommodate the load of the object. Planning the transportation of the sculpture to the site began about four months ago when a team of engineers, art transportation experts, the sculptor and city officials began tackling the project. The simple solution would be to assemble the piece on site. But the working conditions in a public park would be less than ideal, and putting the sculpture together there would take away from the aura of an artwork designed to look as if it is one piece of metal rather than welded from several parts, officials said.
Perfection is the key.
Right now Kapoor is talking to companies in Scotland and California about making it, according to Machin. In either case, the sculpture would have to cross open seas and navigate the Panama Canal or the St. Lawrence Seaway. Machin believes the number of bridges on the Mississippi River may preclude sending the sculpture up the river, but that option hasn't been ruled out, he said. If the sculpture arrives via Lake Michigan, one plan is to bring it ashore at Queen's Landing, due east of Buckingham Fountain. Once on land, the sculpture may be put on the back of a flat-bed truck and driven north on Lake Shore Drive to Monroe Drive.