hey, does anyone have any images, or web site info0 of public or underground skate parks...I was reading about this place in Philly under a bridge where they hold anual "freedom" skate parties. Chicago has begun to construct a few throughout the city but they feel artificial. I'm not a skater, just interested.
My firm has been involved in the design of a couple of skateparks. We currently have one under construction check this link
I am a little curious what you mean about artificial? Generally they are made specifically to be entirely skateable. So they definitely have their own typology. They take elements from streets and pools and "remix" them into something more directly suited to skating.
Love Park is a little different it is a "real" park that happens to be suited very well for skating. Currently there is a trend in skatepark design to make the parks more "real".
burnside in portland comes to mind as one of the legendary skateparks...the story goes that a concrete manufacturer built the undulating surface under a bridge w/out any permits or permission of any kind...he just started pouring.
amandine- thats a good resource as well. Ian Borden has another book that is excellent, as well as an article from archis mag. the article used to be archived on their site, but with the redesign i havent been able to locate it.
jcutler - looks like you have the sweetest job ever. do you get to work on parks all the time - or is that just a small part of your overall work in that office?
Wasn't there another thread about the link between architecture and skateboarding? Bordens' book was cited in that one too. I ran a search and nothing came up.
I'm also curious about the subject, having touched on it in a previous project. Looking to further develop the ideas in an upcoming one... anyone have the link?
my old Prof. Iain Borden was crazy on Skateboard architecture and check out the SF courthouse plaza - architects played of skateboarding, city was not amused...
Jeremy. We seem to do a couple of parks a year. The park in the link is our largest skatepark to date. Our projects range from parks, public realm, skateparks, and residential....a good mix.
We are a relatively young firm so skateparks are cool because they give us an opportunity to experiment on detailing that would be a tougher sell on other projects. Definitely learning lots of ways to use concrete.
skateboarding and architecture was a waste of the paper it was printed on. I bought it eagerly and ended up giving it to my cousin. I found very little (orig/intersting) thoughts on the relationship between architecture and skateboarding. It read as an intro to the history of skateboarding and its culture/'stars' and happened to say things about skateboarders liking to grind on benches or rails or curbs. Um....yes...
Im sure there are better works on the relationship between these too subjects? Anyone read anything?
Hi!
i read a great book when i was doing my post grad, its a collection of short discussions on the relationship between architecture and user.
it has a good section about skateboarding...from what i remember...also has a nice piece about someone licking the walls of the barcelona pavillion, with pictures no less.
What I mean by "artificial" is that I consider any skating rink that has restrictions against graffiti and curfew to be artistically restrictive. Perhaps it’s the reorganization of the sport. Basketball was once played with a modified football tossed into an orange crate. There still seems to be a conflict of interest....one side who keeps it in the backyard and under the highway while the otherside places it in the parks and ESPN primetime....however they seem to cross over to one another with relative ease.
I wish I could get some close up shots of your structures.
I hear you about the restrictive nature of some parks. The approach seems to vary from city to city. It basically up to each municipality to determine how to administer their park. Pretty much every park in Vancouver is unsupervised and the only curfew is darkness. Most parks don't have a graffiti policy so most parks are covered in graffiti. Some of it is amazing, but most average at best.
The park in Burnaby will be unsupervised but will try to enforce a no graffiti policy by removing tags once they appear. Personally I like the raw concrete forms with out the paint. Besides you aren't allowed to graffiti anywhere else, why should you be allowed here?
Most skateparks are being built as a result of skating being banned elsewhere in the city. Though I think there will always be an underground element that won't ever go away.
I have posted some new in progress construction pics if you are interested.
wow, thanks for the link. I also have to agree with you on the beauty of 'raw concrete'. I have another question.
I here alot from US architects regarding the problems with local contractors and sloppy concrete construction. Your forms seem flawless...have you taken any extra steps to insure the quality of your work? Or is there really that big a difference between the building industry in US compared to that of Canada?
there's a great skatepark in louisville, ky: deep bowls, full pipe, etc., built by the city government as a public park. phase 2 was to be a snack bar and bathrooms with a roof on which you could skate. was designed by stanley saitowitz and would have been beautiful.
the problem? change in mayoral administration = lost funding. should be some documentation of saitowitz's design out there somewhere though.
I don't know that the state of the construction industry is any better in Canada than the US. I've heard it described that the quality of our building is maybe better on average, but lacking in the truly exceptional. We are lucky on this project to have excellent concrete finishers. Plus they are all skaters so they really care about the project. The walls and stairs aren't quite up to the quality of the flatwork, and bowls but not bad. Plus we have been out on site quite a bit to keep things on track.
The concrete mix for this project is a little different as well. It incorporates high volume flyash in place of cement resulting in a stronger concrete over time. Plus it has environmental benefits. It is part of the ecosmart program follow this link for the casestudy
threads-
the place you speak of is FDR park, its leftover space under I-95 in south philly, next to the stadiums. Its totaly been designed and constructed by skaters, and while it is not like LOVE park(which the idiot mayor has off-limits to local and tourist ($$$$) skaters), which is not intended solely for skating, the fact that it is in the larger park is really cool....
Dec 13, 04 11:09 pm ·
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skate on my architecture please.
hey, does anyone have any images, or web site info0 of public or underground skate parks...I was reading about this place in Philly under a bridge where they hold anual "freedom" skate parties. Chicago has begun to construct a few throughout the city but they feel artificial. I'm not a skater, just interested.
philly is a good example. look up edmund bacon.
love park?
My firm has been involved in the design of a couple of skateparks. We currently have one under construction check this link
I am a little curious what you mean about artificial? Generally they are made specifically to be entirely skateable. So they definitely have their own typology. They take elements from streets and pools and "remix" them into something more directly suited to skating.
Love Park is a little different it is a "real" park that happens to be suited very well for skating. Currently there is a trend in skatepark design to make the parks more "real".
of course the link didn't work so here it is to cut and paste
www.space2place.com/public_bonsor.html
burnside in portland comes to mind as one of the legendary skateparks...the story goes that a concrete manufacturer built the undulating surface under a bridge w/out any permits or permission of any kind...he just started pouring.
also, loud papers published an article a couple years ago about why architects should skate...quick read:
http://www.loudpapermag.com/article.php?id=2
i think this is what you are looking for FDR Park i have more resources lying around on the subject.
vito acconci was working on a skate park in mexico city, i think
Have you checked out this book on skateboarding and architecture?
amandine- thats a good resource as well. Ian Borden has another book that is excellent, as well as an article from archis mag. the article used to be archived on their site, but with the redesign i havent been able to locate it.
jcutler - looks like you have the sweetest job ever. do you get to work on parks all the time - or is that just a small part of your overall work in that office?
Wasn't there another thread about the link between architecture and skateboarding? Bordens' book was cited in that one too. I ran a search and nothing came up.
I'm also curious about the subject, having touched on it in a previous project. Looking to further develop the ideas in an upcoming one... anyone have the link?
As always, much appreciated.
my old Prof. Iain Borden was crazy on Skateboard architecture and check out the SF courthouse plaza - architects played of skateboarding, city was not amused...
Jeremy. We seem to do a couple of parks a year. The park in the link is our largest skatepark to date. Our projects range from parks, public realm, skateparks, and residential....a good mix.
We are a relatively young firm so skateparks are cool because they give us an opportunity to experiment on detailing that would be a tougher sell on other projects. Definitely learning lots of ways to use concrete.
Shit... designing skate parks? Where can I sign up?
skateboarding and architecture was a waste of the paper it was printed on. I bought it eagerly and ended up giving it to my cousin. I found very little (orig/intersting) thoughts on the relationship between architecture and skateboarding. It read as an intro to the history of skateboarding and its culture/'stars' and happened to say things about skateboarders liking to grind on benches or rails or curbs. Um....yes...
Im sure there are better works on the relationship between these too subjects? Anyone read anything?
Hi!
i read a great book when i was doing my post grad, its a collection of short discussions on the relationship between architecture and user.
it has a good section about skateboarding...from what i remember...also has a nice piece about someone licking the walls of the barcelona pavillion, with pictures no less.
try this...
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0415168163/qid=1094734272/sr=1-13/ref=sr_1_0_13/026-4116765-5061257
to jcutler,
What I mean by "artificial" is that I consider any skating rink that has restrictions against graffiti and curfew to be artistically restrictive. Perhaps it’s the reorganization of the sport. Basketball was once played with a modified football tossed into an orange crate. There still seems to be a conflict of interest....one side who keeps it in the backyard and under the highway while the otherside places it in the parks and ESPN primetime....however they seem to cross over to one another with relative ease.
I wish I could get some close up shots of your structures.
Threads
I hear you about the restrictive nature of some parks. The approach seems to vary from city to city. It basically up to each municipality to determine how to administer their park. Pretty much every park in Vancouver is unsupervised and the only curfew is darkness. Most parks don't have a graffiti policy so most parks are covered in graffiti. Some of it is amazing, but most average at best.
The park in Burnaby will be unsupervised but will try to enforce a no graffiti policy by removing tags once they appear. Personally I like the raw concrete forms with out the paint. Besides you aren't allowed to graffiti anywhere else, why should you be allowed here?
Most skateparks are being built as a result of skating being banned elsewhere in the city. Though I think there will always be an underground element that won't ever go away.
I have posted some new in progress construction pics if you are interested.
www.space2place.com/metro_skatepark_progress_photos_Sept8.html
wow, thanks for the link. I also have to agree with you on the beauty of 'raw concrete'. I have another question.
I here alot from US architects regarding the problems with local contractors and sloppy concrete construction. Your forms seem flawless...have you taken any extra steps to insure the quality of your work? Or is there really that big a difference between the building industry in US compared to that of Canada?
there's a great skatepark in louisville, ky: deep bowls, full pipe, etc., built by the city government as a public park. phase 2 was to be a snack bar and bathrooms with a roof on which you could skate. was designed by stanley saitowitz and would have been beautiful.
the problem? change in mayoral administration = lost funding. should be some documentation of saitowitz's design out there somewhere though.
I don't know that the state of the construction industry is any better in Canada than the US. I've heard it described that the quality of our building is maybe better on average, but lacking in the truly exceptional. We are lucky on this project to have excellent concrete finishers. Plus they are all skaters so they really care about the project. The walls and stairs aren't quite up to the quality of the flatwork, and bowls but not bad. Plus we have been out on site quite a bit to keep things on track.
The concrete mix for this project is a little different as well. It incorporates high volume flyash in place of cement resulting in a stronger concrete over time. Plus it has environmental benefits. It is part of the ecosmart program follow this link for the casestudy
threads-
the place you speak of is FDR park, its leftover space under I-95 in south philly, next to the stadiums. Its totaly been designed and constructed by skaters, and while it is not like LOVE park(which the idiot mayor has off-limits to local and tourist ($$$$) skaters), which is not intended solely for skating, the fact that it is in the larger park is really cool....
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