Los Angeles River Sculpture Park Cap and Crossing

In celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the LA River Masterplan, 7 firms were invited to create new visions for the LA River

PROJECT SUMMARY

Drawn out of a hat, we had the daunting task of considering a site with 100’ of existing rails in the Arts District between 1st and 4th Streets.

LA RIVER SCULPTURE PARK  A major part of the new land created above the rails is devoted to a large public park of approximately 15 acres with native vegetation, passive uses, active amenities, and wide views of the river and the Downtown skyline. Given the adjacency of the Arts Districts and the proximity of Sci-Arc, the park is envisioned as a place to view large outdoor sculptures and exhibit artwork in a series of gallery/maker spaces, which could be simply housed in prefabricated structures in keeping with the industrial character of the site. Along the bank, the sculpture park becomes a stepped promenade forming cascading gardens overhanging the existing channel, making it possible to view the river during high water. The promenade continues to step down to reach the riverbank below and descends into the channel itself as a playful set of stepping stones and filtration gardens that foster habitat, help cleanse the water, and provide access to the riverbed as well as a crossing to the other side during normal flow conditions.

LAYERED SYNERGIES  Our concept proposes to express the vertical layering of different uses without entirely segregating them, while finding synergy between them. The existing rails are left uncovered at each end of the site to maintain the visibility of the trains and ends of the bridges, which are such a prominent feature of this part of the city and the history of the river. The infrastructure layer is also revealed at the river’s edge, seen from the accessible riverbed, from the bridges, from the east bank, as well as from the bike path, which is at the level of the tracks. Storage tanks, located between the larger track gaps, are used to store the filtered from the park after it has gone through a filtration layer embedded in the thickness of the lid, which is also engineered to support plants and trees.