ARCHIPELAGO ARCHITECTURE AND LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE
New York, NY USA |
|
 |
| |
 |
National Parks have historically been about preserving and protecting a place of scenic beauty–removed and ideally "untouched" by humans. Gateway is different. It is all about human contact with the environment and the resulting changes that take place over the centuries.
Our design celebrates the process of (un)natural selection. In the 21st century we are beginning to understand that human health and ecology exist within and not separate from the surrounding environment. Gateway, situated between the nation's greatest concentration of humanity and the ocean, presents a special opportunity to explore the connections and tensions inherent in this amalgam of ocean, land, air and settlement. Our design strategy involves three overlapping steps. We want to re-orient the experience of the visitor from the fragment to the whole, restore elements we have lost or disturbed to create a new balance, and preserve those remaining elements which have cultural value.
At Gateway, the new identity of the park begins by uniting the various sites with the surrounding community, the water and the air above thru a simple waterfront pathway. This requires forming relationships with surrounding areas, while linking the parts to the whole physically and programmatically. Transportation linkages are also improved, to unify the park and connect it to the city. At Floyd Bennett Field, the two major water bodies of Gateway are united at the Airfield Orientation Center. Visitors leave their cars behind here, to explore and discover the overlapping web of influences of which they are a part.
|
|
 |
|
Archipelago is an interdisciplinary woman-owned studio which builds on links between architecture and landscape architecture to create spaces and buildings that engage both nature and urbanism. Archipelago is organized around the commitment of Principal Barbara Wilks to quality design and collaboration. The staff of fifteen is organized in a flexible studio manner and includes experienced project managers, project architects, and landscape architects who support each project through to its successful completion.
Barbara E. Wilks, FAIA, ASLA founded Archipelago Architecture and Landscape Architecture in 2006 and W Architecture and Landscape Architecture in 1999 to create design-oriented, multidisciplinary practices focused on urban issues. With special expertise in urban design, public, and institutional projects, she practices as both an architect and landscape architect. Barbara has received many design awards for her work, including four recent national awards. She sits on the Architectural Advisory Panel of Cornell University and is a board member of the National Association of Olmsted Parks. She was honored with election to the College of Fellows, American Institute of Architects in 1999. She has lectured and taught at many colleges and universities, and her work has been exhibited locally and nationally. The team for this project included Tatiana Choulika, Landscape Architect; Ricardo Romo-Leroux, Project Manager and Urban Designer; and Martin Barry, Landscape Designer.
|
|
|
|
