C. Peek, WaMoCo Finalist
July 12, 2011Curious and fantastic news out of Pittsburgh. My old friend from Paris, Catherine Peek, has made it to the finals of the Washington Monument Competition.
Now, I say this is curious news because I’d never realized that the Washington Monument was considered an unfinished vision. However, Robert Wells, the architect who designed the iconic obelisk, wanted a colonnade around the base of the monument, but it was never completed because of budget and aesthetic concerns. It seems that ever since the monument opened in 1885 – it was the world’s tallest building at the time – there has been a long running debate about how to finish the grounds. The competition hopes to resolve this by soliciting ideas from young architects. To quote the organizers:
[T]he Competition asked interested individuals to think how they would complete the unfinished Monument grounds and make them more welcoming for broad civic engagement, hewing to issues of historic visions and modern sustainability, while enhancing the civic and educational experience that the Washington Monument presents for the next generation of visitors.
And, of course, I say this is fantastic news because being named a finalist is a major coup for a young architect like Catherine. There were hundreds of entries that were whittled down to 24 back in January. Now, the six finalists have been announced with final voting to be conducted this fall.
Catherine’s idea is called ‘Field of Stars’ and is based on installing sensors in the grounds of the monument. These sensors generate and store energy every time they are stepped on; at night they will light up with a brightness determined by the number of people who’ve trod over that particular patch of ground. The result will be a field of stars that mirrors the actual human use of the monument by that day’s visitors.
Here’s a shot of the monument snagged from Wikipedia and a illustration of Catherine’s vision. You can learn more about the competition and read the official press release *here*.
Washington Monument
Catherine Peek's vision
