Collaboration of Landscape Architects, architects and artist create masterpiece at Buffalo Bayou

by Jason Hill, LASN

Although it took over 10 years for completion of the design and construction of Sesquicentennial Park at Buffalo Bayou in Houston, the park stands out as an example of how civic art and landscape architectural design can be incorporated into the final product. Phase II of the 10.4-acre, $22.5 million park, which includes the pillars seen here, was opened May 9, 1998.

Using the artwork submissions of over 1,050 children, Houston-born artist Mel Chin created a pillar design which incorporated a laser cutting of each drawing into 3' x 4' stainless steel panels. The panels were then connected to form seven, 40-foot pillars, each with 150 panels, set on 30-foot high split-face masonry units.

Eventually, Buffalo Bayou was recognized as a symbolic treasure which linked the city to its past. To mark the city's 150th birthday in 1986, the City of Houston designated 8.2 acres bordering the Theater District as Sesquicentennial Park. Over the next decade, a collaboration between architect Guy Hagstette, Ray & Hollington Architects, Landscape Architects from Lauren Griffith Associates, and artists Mel Chin and Dean Ruck, with the help of $21.9 million raised by Central Houston and the Buffalo Bayou Partnership, created a park which exemplifies a masterpiece of civic art.

The focus of the project from the beginning was to integrate aesthetic inspiration with traffic flow and flood control. It took over a decade to hash out the project design and during that time, one of the best decisions made was enlisting the help of the Cultural Arts Council of Houston/Harris County. The CACHH, created in 1994, has been a force in enlivening Houston's overall image and was selected by Central Houston Civic Improvement, Inc., to select and manage public art for the Sesquicentennial Park project. The CACHH held a national art design competition and came up with two names, Houston-born Mel Chin and Houston resident Dean Ruck.

Chin went to work with TeamHOU (the name given to the collaboration of design specialists) and brought to life the park's most striking feature, seven pillars, known as the Seven Wonders, which represent seven distinctive aspects of Houston life: Agriculture, Transportation, Manufacturing, Energy, Philanthropy, Medicine/Science, and Technology.

Chin's concept was to work with local school children who would ultimately develop drawings for the sculptures. Chin and TeamHou were able to pull together artwork from over 1,050 children. From there, artists Rachael Splinter and Helen Nagge worked with Chin to translate each drawing into a computer. The computer then guided a laser cutting of each 3' x 4' stainless steel art panel. Ambox, Inc., then cut the steel panels and the pillars, which are each 40-feet tall with 150 individual panels, were put together by Richey Enterprises. Each structure was set on 30-foot high split-face concrete masonry units from Eagle Lake Concrete.

"I envisioned the towers of drawings--like a lace of steel--supporting the creative expression of a city's youth," Chin said at the groundbreaking ceremony. "This work is not about children--it is by children--and it is about the spirit of democratic voice that public art and civic vision can bring--where diversity, imagination, humor is respected, celebrated and a heroic gesture."

Alongside the pillars is the promenade, a 24-foot wide walkway which overlooks the bayou. The walkway was built with standard 4' x 8' pavers in running bond with header borders and washed (rough textured) 6' x 6' pavers in 6-foot bands separating the trees and lights. TimberForm Boulevard benches from Columbia Cascade Company are integrated into the masonry to enhance the cohesiveness of the landscape. Strategically located bike racks, TimberForm Original CycLoops by Columbia Cascade Co., are placed at various intervals along the promenade. Even the drinking fountains, Barrier Free pedestal-Mount Concrete by Haws, match the concrete on the site.

The promenade is built with 4' x 8' pavers in running bond with header borders and washed (rough textured) 6' x 6' pavers in 6-foot bands. TimberForm Boulevard benches are strategically placed along the walkway, so visitors can view the bayou and gardens on the opposite bank.

To get from one bank to the other, visitors can use the Preston Avenue Bridge, a 10' x 50' structure. The entrance to the bridge seen here is buffered by two of the pillars. From the bridge, observers can view the bayou's art/aeration feature, "The Big Bubble."

The promenade leads visitors into The Common. This 1.25 acre semicircular lawn is surrounded by stately trees, including Mexican sycamores, and balustrade railings. The area serves as a performance location for outdoor concerts and is the site of two of Ruck's artistic contributions. The first is "Site Seeing", a view of Houston's history through images which capture major events and everyday life. Ruck spent six months selecting a parade of photographs, one for each of the city's first 15 decades, then transferred them onto porcelain. Each photo was then given a text description and set into the balustrades bordering the northern edge of The Common.

Ruck also designed "Sounds of the Past" for The Common based upon the notion that sound memories last longer than sight memories. The sounds evoke memories of 19th century waterborne commerce, a once large industry for Houston. The sounds, a recording of a steamship whistle and the sound of water churning by a paddlewheel, are triggered by a motion sensor.

From The Common, visitors can access the Preston Avenue Bridge, a 10' x 50' pedestrian bridge across the bayou created by Continental Bridge. The bridge links The Common with gardens on the other side, but also serves as a vista point for Ruck's other artistic contribution to the park, "The Big Bubble."

"Big Bubble is a humble interlude with Buffalo Bayou; a synapse between the people of Houston, the bayou and the park," explained Ruck in his 1996 proposal. "The Big Bubble animates Sesquicentennial Park with a vigorous burst of air rising from the bayou floor, bursting forth at the water's surface, rippling outward to touch its banks, and settling back again. This dynamic kinetic event is triggered by the push of a button by park visitors as well as a system timer at regular intervals. As an unexpected curiosity, the Big Bubble creates wonderment, awareness and involvement for Sesquicentennial Park."

The Upper Garden rises 15 feet above the adjacent streets and above the old, existing, 25-foot high concrete retaining wall, overlooking the bayou and skyline of downtown. A section of the retaining wall has been cut away to allow for a balcony overlook with metal guardrail.

Below the balcony lies The Grotto. Here, an existing storm sewer outfall to the bayou is enhanced with concrete rockwork and landscaping (such as bamboo, gingers and magnolias) to create a pool of water with a the spillway surrounded by dense foliage.

The Lower Garden is below the concrete retaining wall down at the bayou's bankline, connected to the Upper Garden by both a circular stairway and gentle (ADA accessible) ramp. The Landscape Architects made extensive use of native plantings at the site, which is also connected to the Grotto by a walkway.

But this interlace of unique aesthetics was not the only concern when the park was in planning and construction. Nearly all of the park is located within the 100-year flood plain. Silt deposits from flooding, especially in The Common, were anticipated in the design and are controlled with the use of fire hoses (used by park personnel) hooked up to fire hydrants throughout the park. The hoses are used after flooding to wash down the surfaces and force the silt back into the bayou. The retaining walls and pillar bases are designed to withstand flood conditions and the lighting is either located high to avoid flooding or is rated for wet conditions. Erosion is controlled by the landscape material and erosion control mats.

Design engineers got to see their measures in action during September 1998 when a tropical storm came through Houston, barely two months after Phase II opened. The bayou water rose to within a few feet of street level, flooding much of the park. The water receded to about normal levels within 24 hours and there was little damage, save a few trees which had not been in place long enough and were hit by floating debris.

Sesquicentennial Park may have taken over 10 years to complete and may be periodically flooded for that matter. But through the concentrated efforts of architects, Landscape Architects and area artists, the park is a masterpiece in civic art design. lasn