澳大利亞堪培拉中央公園

The Central Parklands consisting of Commonwealth Park, Rond Terraces and Kings Park are prominently located in the geographic center of the Australian capital Canberra. Despite its central location and significance for the overall city structure the parklands presently are insufficiently connected with the surrounding city as well as with one another. This proposal aims to fully integrate the parklands into the city structure, and the integration of the park into the everyday lives of the citizens without forfeiting the symbolic qualities attributed to a central green of a capital.

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Griffin’s design for the capital of Australia was to embody two contradicting thoughts: On the one hand the city was to embody a liberal and democratic spirit, on the other hand it had to reflect the strength and might of the young nation. Griffin managed to balance these ambivalent needs through the introduction of a NETWORK that was a hybrid of the centralized and decentralized network strategies. True to Griffin’s spirit this proposal carries forth the idea of this NETWORK.

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>>> LITERAL CONNECTION >>> While preserving the existing overall structure of the parklands, a new NETWORK LAYER is introduced that strengthens the connection of the parklands with the city as well as the parklands themselves. The NETWORK consists of thin metal lines largely embedded in the existing walkway system that spell out the destination of each walkway on the ground. Pedestrians visiting the National Museum of Australia, for instance, thus are made aware of the existence of the parklands by spelling out the respective name of the place on the pavement in front of the museum. In reverse, the museum is “advertised” in Commonwealth Park. Set at a regular interval, the name of the destinations is repeated, so people arriving from other directions can easily join the path.

>>> VISUAL CONNECTION >>> In order to strengthen the connection of the parklands to one another and arouse people’s curiosity of the currently less frequented Kings Park, two additional elements of connection are introduced. All three central points of the network, Commonwealth Park, Rond Terraces and Kings Park are connected additionally by a central GOLDEN WALKWAY. The GOLDEN WALKWAY takes the visitor on a tour through all areas of the parkland. Seating and resting areas are incorporated into the walkway system. The eastern end of the GOLDEN WALKWAY is marked by a water feature, formulating a distinct contrast to the dry surroundings of Kings Park. In order to provide shade along the way, a series of CANOPIES is introduced. The CANOPIES also visually connect the entire park system. The resulting new vista is set perpendicular to Griffin’s representative vista connecting Parliament with the Canberra War Memorial, thus symbolically pointing out the dualistic function of the park.