ART IN THE GARDEN
Architect shares his views
It is said that you can identify architects by their distinctive eyeglasses. In the case of Ken Smith, the award-winning New York City-based landscape architect, this maxim is most definitely true.
Perhaps his round black spectacles allow him to see the world differently. Indeed, for the last 23 years Smith’s vision has transformed derelict outdoor spaces into unique and dynamic public parks: his company has undertaken projects that include a huge rail yard in Santa Fe, a decommissioned air station in Irvine, California, and a waterfront promenade in Lower Manhattan not far from the other famous walkway known as the High Line.
All of these abandoned or neglected properties are now not only sustainable green spaces, but they also reflect an interwoven relationship between art, culture and landscape so the results are joyously usable spaces for ordinary people.
We are so fortunate that Smith will be coming to Ottawa as part of the Beyond the Edge 2015 lecture series. Beyond the Edge is the name of the land art exhibition presented in collaboration with the Canadensis Botanical Garden Society (CBGS) at the Central Experimental Farm. This summer will be its second year and in an exciting twist, the Canada Council Art Bank will be loaning five monumental outdoor sculptures to the project.
Sculpture is also incorporated in Smith’s work, often in unexpected and extraordinary ways. Consider the communal and bright red crescent-shaped seating on a plaza at a new theatre building in Brooklyn or a custom metal hand railing at a private home in California. In this latter design, the railing gleefully imitates the graceful pattern of a rhythmic gymnast’s red satin ribbon.
In the New York City waterfront promenade project, Smith’s firm has collaborated with other professionals to create a modern, relevant and interactive public space in a huge multi-staged undertaking. This new park is located in a three-kilometre stretch of land alongside the East River next to and underneath the busy FDR highway and has been in progress since before 2010.
These spaces are big, but that doesn’t mean they’re impersonal. They are beautiful, functional and thoughtful. Along the Manhattan esplanade, significant importance has been given to usable spaces for city-dwellers: they include two recreation piers (with lawns, seating and viewing areas), a dog run, fishing balconies, exercise platforms, swings, overlooks and ironically, a mussel habitat demonstration area.
I love the variety of wood and steel seating that includes recliners to relax, erect benches to people-watch and high chairs upon which to perch at the water’s edge (with a railing wide enough for a laptop or journal.)
Much of the challenge in producing these landscapes in urban centres is making sure the living elements remain living.
Drought-tolerant and relatively laissez-faire perennials like ornamental grasses and natives are selected, along with relatively fuss-free trees and shrubs that exhibit multi-season colour and interest.
Paving surfaces are often permeable, allowing rain to penetrate and nourish plant roots while creative paving patterns are made an integral part of the overall design.
There is a lot to learn from the sustainable and forward-looking work of Smith and his contemporaries. I hope you’ll show him a warm welcome and support this important fundraiser.