Together
Client: City of Pittsburgh
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Service: Design, Fabrication, Installation
Date Installed: 12/2022
Together was designed to serve as a community table, a place for people to listen, learn, and connect with one another around the park's past, present, and future. The design was developed through feedback and conversations with the Highland Park community and surrounding areas. The park is one of the large parks in Pittsburgh and is used by people all over the city, so we focused on conducting multiple participatory design workshops in different areas and connected with many organizations to extend our outreach to help develop the design.
“I can’t wait to come back and bring my family”
Its location, adjacent to the Highland Park pool and Lake Carnegie, was highlighted by the community as an area in the park that is often used by different demographics of people participating in a variety of activities that don’t necessarily engage with one another. The spatial installation is designed to serve as a connector not only between the physical spaces but between the people utilizing these spaces. This area of the park has a long history of social connection and divide, with it being one of the first integrated pools in Pittsburgh and one of the most diversely used parks in the city. The work becomes a multifunctional landmark that utilizes different open-ended play methodologies to break down social barriers and begin to connect people with each other and the park itself. It becomes not just a visual piece but a functional additive component for the park, providing a way of discovery, exploration, and destination.
Together is designed as a series of undulating surfaces that wrap and frame two old white ash trees on the site. The stepped surfaces serve as an invitation for gathering. It becomes a table, a bench, a stage, a place to rest, an open-ended programmable community space. The space is used for vendors, barbeques, birthday parties, and more, so the work is designed to become an additive component to interconnect these activities and bring people together.
“This is such an amazing asset to the park. Thank you for listening to our feedback.”
