Studio Lead: Katherine Jenkins
Completed December, 2019
The concept that inspired this pocket park comes from Gilles Clement’s theory of the “Third Nature” as depicted by his work, “L’ île Derborence”, in Parc Henri Matisse, Lille, France. The forms are also inspired by the limestone alvar formations that are found in only three places on earth: the U.K., Scandinavia and the Great Lakes Regions of the U.S. The great walls located at the pinch point of the site make unavailable the forests growing on top, asking the question, “What should we leave be?” The formations are built with the wastes from the quarry, and are rough in formation, inviting spontaneous growth to occur on site. Much of the ground is carved into rivulets where water can flow through the site, further inviting spontaneity and change. Overall, the site serves as a reminder of both the precious ecologies and systems that are both invisible to the city and essential to its sustenance.
Molly McCahan 