Boston – Ray Dunetz Landscape Architecture and Beth Galston, environmental artist worked collaboratively to create this jewel of open space in the bustling center of Jamaica Plain. Their design philosophy was to create a unified vision for
the renovated park by blurring the lines between “Landscape Architecture” and “Sculpture.”
The collaborators felt that the park as originally designed was static and uninviting. The old park design was based on a grid which they wanted to break open. How could we invite movement and energy into the space? We envisioned the park as a lively area that would invite people to enter, stroll, perhaps pause and relax, eat lunch or gather in small groups on their way to other activities. We came up with a “swirl scheme” that broke open the grid and incorporated sinuous curves throughout the design. The community supported this idea.
The design features a curved seatwall with Englishman’s Bay granite, curving decorative pavements, Honey Locust street trees to allow dappled shade into the park, colorful shrub and perennial plantings and a purple 120’ long chain link fence.
The sculptural fence is the signature piece for the site, transforming what was once an ugly barrier between the courts and the passive park into an elegant and beautiful artwork that sets the stage and becomes a landmark for the entire park.
The appearance of the fence changes continually, depending on your vantage point and time of day. At different angles the fence can look more or less purple, or more or less curved; its appearance changes with every step you take. Sometimes you are looking through several layers of mesh, so it looks purpler. In addition, as the sun shifts throughout the day, the fence changes in color and translucency. In the morning, the light is behind the fence when viewed from
South Street, so the mesh is in shadow and the color is subtler, while in the afternoon sunlight hits from the front, so it looks more intensely purple. Sunlight projects through the fence, casting serpentine shadows on the walkways of
the park. At night, special up lighting along the length of the fence creates a dramatic effect, emphasizing the curved form of the artwork.
