Author: Peter Graves

Confronted with the challenge of constructing a green, oasis-like park in a desert climate, Heatherwick decided to embrace the vernacular topology of a cracked desert floor, setting the park’s green space 20 meters (65 feet) underneath a series of fractal-shaped roof structures supported by large columns. 

“The project evolved as a series of cracked pieces of the desert surface raised on columns to form a gentle dome across the site. These elevated pieces create a perforated canopy of partial shade under which a lush garden can grow, protected from the harsh excesses of the hot desert sun,” the design team said in a statement. “This sunken oasis becomes a landscape of plants and mature trees, forming a series of interconnected public recreational spaces.”

 

These new public spaces will include community gardens, recreational areas, a library, and an outdoor cinema, among many other public amenities. 

 

Heatherwick Studio was intent on challenging the dynamic between Abu Dhabi’s existing green spaces and the ecological context of the desert in which they are situated. The traditional European or American-style surface park not only clashes with the desert aesthetically, but is also environmentally unsustainable due to the harsh climate. “By creating partial shade for plants, the canopy reduces the amount of water lost to evaporation, improving the park’s energy efficiency and sustainability. Whilst providing shade in the daytime, the elevated plates also become a network of unique meeting places in the cooler evening hours.”

The project statement on the architect’s website begins: “Can you make a park out of the desert?” In Al Fayah’s case, the park is not within the desert itself but under it. Within the gaps left by the cracks and crevices, a lush riparian corridor is revealed, providing cool respite for the desert city inhabitants. A new sensitivity to the local ecology coupled with an innovative, layered design scheme sets this public place apart in terms of landscape design in the Middle East. 

Looking through the project images, it’s easy to see that the construction of this long parkway will be nothing short of a monumental task. The vast webbing of thick concrete, as seen in perspectives looking under the structure, seem at odds with the plain, light landscape palette that a desert environment provides. It’s a heavy design move that creates a beautiful, lush space where otherwise one wouldn’t exist. 

Al Fayah is park of contradictions: it’s an oasis and dry, cracked earth; it’s water-sustainable and construction-heavy; it’s part of the desert and apart from it. Despite these contradictions, though, it’s depicted as a place I would love to explore. 

What do you think of the design for this desert oasis?

Via dezeen

 

Images © Heatherwick Studio

Barrier islands have existed for a long time and occur naturally along coastlines worldwide. Scientists aren’t in consensus about how they form, but their protective properties are no mystery. Using financial and hydrodynamic modeling tools, WXY and West 8 researched the potential impact of placing new barrier islands along the coast in a long chain of dune-like formations. The Blue Dunes would act as a buffer for storm surge and wave action, taking the strength out of a future Sandy before it hits land. 

The approach to protecting the coast comes not only from an ecological perspective but also a financial one. A core component of the proposal includes cost savings from less future investment in hard infrastructure such as seawalls, as well as active economic generators in the form of offshore wind energy. 

WXY/West 8’s proposal stems from scientific analysis regarding the mitigative properties of barrier islands as well as research into the their potential economic benefits. It’s an enormous, earthen shield for the communities on shore, and it’s designed to be a lasting solution. 

 

Nowhere is the concept of “the beach” as a cultural element more important than in the famous/infamous Jersey shore. Sasaki, along with Rutgers and Arup, focuses on the concept of the beach not only as a cultural icon, but an important focal point of economic, social, and environmental systems. In their analysis, the definition of the beach is expanded to include three coastal typologies: Barrier Islands, Headlands, and the Inland Bay. It’s this broadening of geographic scope that Sasaki believes will “deepen the physical extent, ecological reach, and cultural understanding of the beach.” Within each of these defined typologies, the design team has selected three project areas as case studies, allowing the project to maintain geographic specificity yet applicability to any other site within the same ecological zone.

 

Sasaki’s proposal is incredibly wide-ranging; it almost seems as if they’ve combined three proposals into one. However, rather than approaching the project as a planning exercise from 10,000-feet above the ground, they’ve decided to focus in on the details as well. My favorite example of this is the dual-purpose boardwalk, in which “two different boardwalk conditions are explored – the civic core and the experimental zone.” This experimental boardwalk, rather than built to hover above the sand, merges with the ground itself, even aiding in future dune creation. The boardwalk itself curves and angles along the surface of the sand like a covering, adapting itself to the irregular surface. This dune creation allows for the protection of inland elements as well as aiding in habitat creation for birds and wildlife.

 

 

Martha Schwartz, known for her iconic–and sometimes controversial–landscape designs, recently completed Fengming Mountain Park, a dramatic landscape that shapes a unique identity for the new development west of the Chongqing city center. Located on an extremely steep site, the park includes a meandering series of riverine fountains and architectural follies along geometric switchbacks leading from a car park on high ground to a sales center far below.

 

“The site is extremely steep, using a broad zigzag path to provide mobility down the slope, this strong form enables a sequence that is used throughout the scheme to continue a pattern language as you arrive; as painted art on the pavement; down the zig zag path; into meandering water features; through plazas and then to the final destination at the Sales Centre. At this point, the pattern intensifies into raised benches, coloured paving and lights to provide a crescendo of excitement.” – Martha Schwartz Partners