AB11

Andrew Burns

A framework for participation

2011

Andrew Burns Architecture converted a network of Central London laneways into a unique urban park. The project arose through participation in a Byera Hadley exchange program hosted by the Architecture Foundation, London. Andrew Burns, Hannah Tribe and Matthew Chan were joined by UK practices We Made That, Studio Occupi and Studio Meda. The proposal overlaid a ‘harlequin’ geometry on the site, narrowing and widening to create complex perceptions of space. A garden bed was delineated by road marking paint applied to the low-cost asphalt base, creating a zone for placement of pots by the local community. A series of pots in concrete pipes initiated the garden, with planting selection by Sarah Eberle. More a framework for participation than a landscape design, the proposal utilized a strategic ‘incompleteness’ to enable a sense of ownership by the local community.