The High Line: A Structure For All Seasons

The High Line: A Structure For All Seasons

By Rachel Gamble

         Throughout my ten-day trip in northern Italy, I frequently experienced works of architecture that were centuries and in some instances even millennia old. This continually raised a question in my head – what leads to such timelessness in architecture? Renowned architect Frank Gehry once said that "Architecture should speak of its time and place, but yearn for timelessness." Yet, the works of architecture built today seem temporary and tenuous in light of classical buildings like St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice or the Arena in Verona. Such historic structures lead me to wonder how modern-day architects can achieve this ageless quality in contemporary architecture. In the High Line in New York, Diller Scofidio + Renfro present an interesting way of making a man-made structure more timeless and enduring – by designing their structure to adapt over time with the nature around it. Would buildings perhaps be more permanent if they mimicked the High Line and were more integrated with the earth?

         In the High Line, Diller Scofidio + Renfro worked with James Corner Field Operations and Pete Oudolf to create an elevated plant-lined path through the urban landscape of New York. This aerial park changes with the seasons due to its plant life. By synthesizing itself to nature and to natural patterns of growth, it evolves and becomes much longer-lasting. The project began with the renovation of an elevated railway in Manhattan. This piece of urban infrastructure had, over time, fallen into disrepair and been reclaimed by nature - a man-made structure that could not withstand the years. In the refurbished High Line, we observe how a structure can be made more permanent if it is created to adapt with nature. According to Diller Scofidio + Renfro, the High Line is designed to “remain perpetually unfinished, sustaining emergent growth and change over time." Nature is continuously changing, but the High Line is in synch with the nature that it houses. Thus, even as the weather and plants change with the seasons, the High Line adapts and changes as well.

         The structure does this in a variety of ways. The paving system on the walkway alternates between pre-cast concrete and vegetation that blend together. Intentional cracks in the pavement encourage the natural growth of wild plants. The new plants placed in beds along the walkway were selected after researching the area. When choosing the species, the designers drew inspiration from the self-sufficient native plants under the train tracks, to compliment the surrounding landscape. Many of the flowers and bushes were locally grown – plants that had been proven to thrive in the New York climate. This vegetation was planned out so that there are constantly plants in bloom, no matter the season. Additionally, the plants on the High Line are drought-tolerant and low-maintenance to reduce upkeep costs. The layers of soil, as well, were carefully organized to retain water where it is needed and aid with drainage. 

         This “agri-tecture,” as designer James Corner termed it, carefully integrates architecture with plant life. By selecting hardy, adaptable plants with seasonal variation, the designers of the High Line produced a structure that can adapt with time. The project leads me to wonder if modern-day architecture was synchronized more with the nature around it, could it become more permanent, like the timeless Venetian and Veronese buildings I saw during my travels? Perhaps the answer to the quest for timelessness in contemporary architecture is for architects to design structures that, like nature, are flexible and can adapt with the changing seasons. 

Blending of hardscape and softscape

Native plants

Perennial grasses that bloom in all seasons

Sources

"James Corner Field Operations and Diller Scofidio + Renfro." The High Line, 2012. Web. 24 Sep. 2012. <http://www.thehighline.org/design/design-team-selection/field-operations-diller-scofidio-renfro>

Gehry, Frank. The Pritzker Architecture Prize, 2009. Web. 24 Sep. 2012. <http://www.pritzkerprize.com/2011/ceremony-speech-1>