The Spreading Grounds
Instructor: Chris Aykanian
Site vs. Los Angeles Coliseum
Site vs. Echo Park
 
Site vs. Dodgers Stadium
  
 
Site vs. Staples Center & Convention Center
  

The site for this project is an enormous vacant lot owned by the Department of Water and Power. It is intended to be used as a "spreading ground"- a site where reclaimed water will be naturally cleansed and reintroduced into an underlying aquifier. Additionally, the site will be a park- the programming of which is at our discredition.

Having never dealt with such a large site before, my first goal was to gain comprehension of its size by comparing it to other landmarks with which I was familiar.

Through my visits to the site, I began to understand its unique position between very different land uses. To the South lie the Forest Lawn and Mt Sinai Cemeteries. To the East is Griffith Park and Travel Town. The North of the site is cut by the Los Angeles River and 134 Freeway, beyond which is the Los Angeles Equestrian Center and a unique equestrian community. Further West is Warner Bros. Studio, and to the Northwest are the iconographic Imagineering Building and the eyesore of ABC Studios.

As an excercise designed to help us better understand the formal properties of landscape, Professor Aykanian asked us to fashion 1' x 1' topography models from sandwiched sheets of MDF. The topographic models served as vignettes of possible conditions and operations on the site. The issues explored were primarily the containment of water, and the crossing and juxtaposition of different paths.
A pool of water that
changes form with the water level
Crossing curvilinear paths erode figure/ground relationship
The juxtaposition of paths of different heights and widths
Intersecting of paths that have a textural quality
An undulating topography
A path carved through this topo
At low tide, small pools of water are present
At high tide, the figure/ground relationship reverses

 

As my process evolved, I began modeling topographies on the computer. The computer modeling tools allowed me to explore form in a different manner

Because of the site context, I became increasingly interested in the networks of paths that cross and form the boundaries of the site. By connecting and relating these various modes of transit, I could join together the different zones that bordered the site while raising awarness of this unique condition.

Each path and related mode of transport had unique properties such as the path width, the turning radius of the path, the speed of movement, and the height of a person utilizing the mode of transport. As an architect, I found it unique to work with a concept that related to rapid movement and large scale.

These studies gave me information to structure both the plan and section of my design. The section is manipulated to create direct lines of sight between the users of different paths. The plan is comprised entirely of paths that intertwine and overlap. Some of these paths are actual means of travel, while others are the planting areas themselves which formally share the language of path. The central element of the design is the freeway garden, which allows pedesrians to experience the size, scale and rhythm of a feeway a frozen in time.

For Los Angeles, this concept turns the idea of a park on its head. The Los Angeles metro area, which is over sixty percent paved land, is dominated by transportation infrastructure. Green spaces are small pockets against the gagantuan field of asphalt and concrete. Here, the two are intertwined. Perhaps such a design can serve as a lansdscape prototype for a world that is increasingly post-urban, but optimistically, not divided.
A study of tranportation and its critical dimensions
Site Section 1
Trying to capture the speed of movement along Forest Lawn Drive
Site Section 2
A sensuous curve that will define a bike path
Perspective showing same view as photo to the left
Scheme created from a montage of topo models
Facing West along bike path near freeway garden
Birdseye perspective of site and surroundings
Facing Southeast toward parking lot
Site plan
Detail area from plan