LARCH 060

Thursday March 18th, 1999
Announcements: none

Lecture notes:

FREDRICK LAW OLMSTEAD (1822-1903) and CENTRAL PARK with CALVERT VAUX:

Illustrates:

• Master planning: future , long term committment
• Comprehensive (variety of activities), complex (all kinds of people/activities)
• Public capital
• Had to plan the funding

Intention:

• Healthful recreation--theraputic, green places
• Social reform--afforded opportunities for the people
• Democratic/for all classes--diverse
• Open space rights

Design Expression:

• English Landscape School style but more intentional (country aesthetic)
• "Country touched by man"
• Solids/voids--masses of vegetation and open areas for activity
• Innovative circulation--no traffic, very important for carriages, horses, people
• Had spontaneous as opposed to planned recreation
• Green areas to accomodate activity
• Allee was prime geometric feature
• Plan for Central Park: Started with area which was a dump, glaciated so it faced many challenges
• Fredrick Law Olmstead wrote books on slavery which brought attention to him. He was appointed superintendent
• Calvert Vaux: wanted to partner with Olmstead, they entered into the Central Park plan competition
• The Dairy in Central Park provided milk for the children (designed by Vaux)
• The design of Central Park affected the weekend activities of New York (less church attendance)
• They were making more money on the park than they were spending on it (very successful), classes mingled.
• Central Park is still considered the Jewel of Manhattan