transparency of

ecological process
in urban parks
Jeffrey Tunkey
Barcelona 2008
abstract
This study is the result of 14 weeks of
research, observation and documenta-
tion on three recently constructed parks
in Barcelona, Spain. This study examines
the ways in which the parks reveal and in-
terpret ecological phenomena, processes,
and relationships and how people use the
space. This study seeks to understand the
new paradigm of a conscious commitment
to sustainability in urban design. Each of
the three parks being studied has its own
unique contribution to the subject, and the
synthesis of all furthers knowledge in a way
where one could not. The performance ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Parc de Diagonal Mar
of aesthetics, stormwater and ecology is
examined through diagrams and photo- I would like thank my parents Susan and Jeff for their support,
graphs, and the habits and patterns of use I would not have been able to complete this semester without
are recorded and compared to the physical their help. Katelyn Koury for providing me with valuable input
characteristics of the parks. and being there for advice when I needed her. Tony Miller for
his guidance on this project, and Paul Brogna for his help in
orienting me to the city of Barcelona.
contents
03 Site Selection 08 Methods and
29 35
Process Study Process
Parc TMB Defining Types

Parc Parc de Diagonal Mar Comparisons Looking Toward

01
Introduction
07
Main and
Supporting 09 Central 21 33 36 the Future
Sites del
Poblenou

Parc Central del Poblenou: Top Right

Parc TMB: Center Bottom
01 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks
Introduction
U rban parks are a precious oasis in a
landscape of hardness. An opportu-
nity for living matter to grow and thrive.
These spaces are vital for the life of a
city. As Frederick Law Olmsted identified
more than a hundred years ago, the urban
dweller must have access to space where
some form of contact can occur with na-
ture, and the mind can be replenished
(Howett 1998). Olmsted understood that
urban parks were necessary for maintain-
ing public health and the health of the city
as a whole. In our current environmental
situation these ideas have reached a critical
level of importance. We must change our
attitudes and then our actions to begin re-
pairing the damage we have already done
to natural systems. It is of great importance
that in our future designs we create urban
landscapes which contain stormwater fil-
tering systems, plentiful vegetation to filter
the air, and respect wildlife habitat while
creating functional recreational spaces.
This is a great challenge for landscape ar-
chitects, and as metropolitan areas become
larger and more dense the demand for such
spaces will increase rapidly. We must push
past the old notions of relegating stormwa-
ter to underground pipes, and paving over
green areas to reduce maintenance. The no-
tion of sustainability is only just beginning
to entering the mainstream culture in the
United States, and landscape architects are
poised to take a lead on projects that deal
with complex social, cultural and environ-
mental issues. This study strives to collect
new ideas for urban park design from three
parks in Barcelona that demonstrate a com-
mitment to the environment, and an under-
standing of ecological processes in relation
to human perceptions and everyday life.
The city of Barcelona places great
importance on public open space and as a
result many highly innovative urban parks
have been built during the cities long and
tumultuous history. This study focuses on
the more recently constructed parks and
how they respect the systems of nature. By
studying these parks I hope to bring to the
table new ideas that can help drive urban
park design in North America, where fresh
ideas and approaches are sorely needed. I
have laid out my approach to this study in
the form of a question which has framed
my methods study approach; the question
is as follows: How are urban parks in
Barcelona designed to reveal and inter-
pret ecological phenomena, processes,
and relationships, and how do people
respond to this transparency? The ques-
tion gave structure to my understanding
of the physical space of each park and the
observation of people in relation to natu-
ral systems within the park. The question
was developed in my proposal along with
the methods to fulfill it. Previously in my
proposal I engaged in a literature review to
better inform my direction and understand-
ing of the city of Barcelona, and the plan-
ning and design decisions that have been
made in the recent history of the city. That
information has been built upon in this
study and helps to support my ideas and
define more specific areas of inquiry.
The difference between a park like
Central Park in New York City or the Em-
erald Necklace in Boston, and a contem-
porary urban park such as those I studied
in Barcelona is vital to this project. The
difference lies in the realm of the design-
ers intent and the physical manifestation of
that intent into the built form of the park.
The design of Central Park drew peoples
attention to plants, stomwater and habi-
tat, but that was not what Olmsted created
their aesthetic for. He sought to carry on
an ideal to which recreational landscapes
were held in those times. This ideal was
rooted in the tradition of the pastoral land-
scape. Which resulted in the ecological
value of the plants being concealed. For
the Emerald Necklace he was so success-
ful in hiding the actual ecological func-
tionality inherent in his designs, that users
had no idea they were witnessing an eco-
logical restoration. He hid the ecological
processes because if he did not the space
would not be considered a park, it would
have been seen as uncared for and danger-
ous. The casual observer did not know that
stormwater was being filtered, and that the
plants had been chosen for other reasons
than purely for beauty. His approach was
very ecologically conscious but he hid his
true agenda from the users because at that
time people would be very turned off by a
creek or wetland if they knew it was storm-
water or runoff.
According to Robert Thayer a sus-
tainable landscape is congruent and trans-
parent1 so can we assume that Central Park
and the Emerald Necklace in Boston are
not sustainable landscapes? Because they
lack transparency of ecological process? I
would argue that they are inherently sus-
tainable landscapes but they lack a didactic
quality which is vital to the education of
our current culture. My secondary study
site, Parc de Diagonal Mar is an excellent
example of the form of the landscape being
indicative of its actual function. The de-
signed landscape of Parc Diagonal Mar is
in keeping with actual ecological functions
while at the same time allowing people to
observe, interact and be a part of the sys-
Figure 1. Design and ecology are complementary problem solving
techniques. From Ecological Design for Environmental Problem Solv-
ing. By Susan Galatoitsch
1
Priciples for sustainable landscapes laid out in Gray World, Green
Heart by Rober Thayer.
tem.
Figure 1 illustrates that ecology and
design are complementary problem solv-
ing techniques and therefore all well con-
ceived designs can contain the principles
of ecology as well as design. New parks
need to be dense with natural systems and
thick with filtration opportunities. Any park
within a city is in some form an insertion
into the urban fabric, into the built form. It
can be seen as an oasis, but rarely does the
park sit on ground that was always beau-
tiful. Parks are normally only created out
of necessity or with good reason. Take for
example Central Park, which was built on
former dumping grounds that had a difficult
topography of swamps and bluffs that dis-
couraged development (Beveridge 2005).
A Park might be created because the land
is unusable, maybe it is too steep or there is
a water feature that is unsuitable for build-
ing upon. A park might also be on the site
of some natural feature that is an attraction
and has been deemed valuable enough to
save the space from development. A more
recently common theme, one which I will
focus on, is turning an old industrial site
into a park, reclaiming the land as public
space and using plants to remediate the soil
and surrounding environment. All three of
my study sites fall into the category be-
ing built on former brownfields2. Turning
brownfields into parks is a growing trend
in the field of landscape architecture. Such
transformations are mutually beneficial
for the environment and the surrounding
neighborhoods. It makes sense in terms of
compatibility to create hybrid recreational
spaces, combined with natural systems,
and even food systems.
This past summer I tested various
methods of observation and acts of dia-
gramming in Yorkville park in Toronto,
Ontario. The park was specifically designed
to provide unique, inner-city ecological
opportunities for the display of native plant
species and communities, and to provide a
variety of spatial and sensory experiences,
landscape qualities and park functions.
From these experiments I learned ways in
which I might apply similar techniques for
my study in Barcelona.
This study is directed to discover the
people on the earth as of 12.16.2008 at 4:20PM
-source: census.gov
available land necessary to sustain the consumption of each
person on the planet
-Ralea and Prat (1999): 25 and Wackernagel et al. (2000)
ecological footprint of a person in the U.S.
-Ralea and Prat (1999): 25 and Wackernagel et al. (2000)
ecological footprint of a person in Barcelona
-Ralea and Prat (1999): 25 and Wackernagel et al. (2000)
ecological footprint of a person in India
-Ralea and Prat (1999): 25 and Wackernagel et al. (2000)
way that landscape architects treat the aes-
thetics, the experience and the built form
of a design that is sustainable and ecologi-
cally sound. Is a deliberate decision made
to expose unwanted processes into flumes
and runnels? Is the design transparent to
the sites history? Are environmental issues
like a reduction in runoff, the urban heat
island effect treated in an intelligent and
conscious manner. Do maintenance prac-
tices consist of recycling and composting?
All urban parks regardless of how sustain-
able they are, need intense amounts of in-
put to keep them clean and suitable for use.
To what degree are horticultural practices
employed for the maintenance of trees and
shrubs? Or are plants left to grow to their
own accord.
The idea I am postulating is not to imi-
tate the visual and aesthetic parts of nature
but to imitate the functional ones, being in
keeping with the ecological process. To de-
sign something from natures forms but dis-
tinctly different in appearance through ab-
straction, reduction and distillation, or any
design technique that is form giving. Parks
built in the era before the environmental
movement, and the awakening of public
consciousness to the idea of sustainability,
tend to give the appearance of being natu-
ral, but really are not and actually require
large amounts of energy inputted into them
to maintain a perfect pastoral aesthetic. A
new park should not need to imitate some
ideal of nature that people think is pleasing
such as a neatly mowed lawn.
This study seeks to understand the
new paradigm of a conscious commitment
to sustainability in urban design. Each of
December 22, 2008 02
6,747,543,069
1.7 hectares
10.3 hectares
3.25 hectares
.8 hectares
the three parks being studied has its own
unique contribution to the subject, and the
synthesis of all furthers knowledge in this
area when one could not. The study breaks
apart key areas of each park, identifying
the design language and success or failure
of the park as living up to a new concep-
tion of a sustainable park. The three parks
are compared and contrasted identifying
the areas of innovation and the areas in
need of improvement. From this new ty-
pologies are born, ones that help describe
the modern urban condition a park is inter-
twined in. New conceptions of what con-
stitutes a park are realized, ones that re-
spond more appropriately to a postmodern
condition by prescribing specific activities
for space less, creating more opportunity
and chance for different roles and sce-
narios to be played out. Each design in its
own way acknowledges the complexity of
urban systems, the inter-connectedness of
life systems and respects diversity.
Figure 2 displays the disturbing infor-
mation that we are indeed living beyond
the earth’s capacity and as our popula-
tion growth accelerates towards it peak of
10 billion, one can only image what lies
ahead. We must take small steps such as
integrating vegetation and green areas into
the urban environment to help offset the
strain on the environment. The opportu-
nity is there to begin creating high perfor-
mance environmental machines within our
recreational spaces. Natural processes can
create amenity, therefore the aims of recre-
ation and leisure are compatible with those
of ecology.
Figure 2. Available land to offset human environmental impact vs.
population
2
Brownfields are abandoned or under-used industrial and commer-
cial facilities available for re-use.
03 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks December 22, 2008 04

Site Selection Process

n my first few excursions into the city
O it became apparent that I had not fully
realized how dry of a climate Barcelona
was in, compounded by the fact that the
city was in the worst drought ever record-
ed. Since a large portion of my study topic
would include the exposure and manage-
ment of stormwater Before arriving in Bar-
celona I had two parks in mind that I knew
had potential to be my study sites. Parc de
Diagonal Mar is a well known and highly
acclaimed design with attention to sus-
tainability, education, ecology and habitat
protection. Diagonal Mar is one of the few
parks in the usually dry city of Barcelona
that has extensive stormwater management
systems. I discovered Parc TMB in a book
published by a Barcelona based publishing
company which focused on cutting edge
Fontsanta Parc
landscapes. I had very high hopes for Parc
TMB because of its innovative stormwater
system, and its apparent commitment to
didactiscism. However on my first visit to
the park I was extremely disappointed by
the lack of users and the prevalent vandal-
ism. I realized that it would not be possible
to use as a primary study site because of
its remote location and lack of a user base.
My assessment was confirmed upon my
instructor visit where we determined it
was not a viable site because my methods
would require at least some people to be
using the park, which even on a Saturday
was empty.
I scoured many sources of media in-
cluding periodicals, maps and architec-
ture guides to find every possible park
that might be relevant to my study topic.
I spent a week and a half visiting other
parks around the city and analyzing their
compatibility regarding my study topic. I
visited the following parks: Parc Diagonal
Mar, Parc dels Auditoris, Parc Clot, Park
Güell, Parc de St. Marti, Parc Central de
Nou Barris, Parc del Poblenou, Fontsanta
Parc, Parc del Litoral, Parc Fluvial del
Besos, Parc Metropolità de Can Zam and
Finally Park Central del Poblenou. I chose
the parks based on either an article I had
read about them or their proximity to a
potential natural area such as the Besos
river or the Mediterranean Sea. Visiting
each one helped me understand better ex-
actly what sort of park I really wanted to
study. The wetlands of Diagonal Mar had
barely any water in them and I knew that
other than Diagonal Mar I was unlikely to
find any park that had a wetland or marshy
area. After visiting older parks like Parc
del Clot and Parc de St. Marti I realized I
needed something more recent which, ini-
tially I thought might be Parc Central de
Nou Berris, until I stumbled across Parc
Central del Poblenou. The park because of
its recent opening the spring of 2008 did
not exist on any city maps, and unless one
new the exact name it did not appear in any
magazines or internet searches. On my first
sighting I knew right away that Parc Cen-
tral del Poblenou should be my study site.
It fit all my criteria such as being built on a
former brownfield, it was a recent design, it
displayed a deliberate commitment to sus-
tainability and it was located in a former
industrial neighborhood. My site selection
criteria is as follows.
+ The space must be well used at
my discretion
+ At least two out of three sites must
be on former brownfields.
+ Ecological processes must play a
significant visible role
+ Stormwater systems must be vis-
ible
+ There must be naturalized
areas where succession is occur-
ring.
+ Wildlife habitat must be present.
+ There must be potential for a di-
dactic user relationship.
features that made Parc Central del Poble-
nou the most suitable site are; user behav-
ior can be easily observed, there are varied
landscapes including naturalistic, grass,
herb garden, lunar, wet and sand/gravel.
Thought has clearly been given to sus-
tainability, water is collected and stored,
organic waster is collected compacted and
composted. The sculptures present in the
park could be considered environmental
art, do to the way the plants are designed to
grow up the structures, and what they will
look like when they are all covered with
plants. There are many varied microcli-
mates. The site is a former brownfield and
factory complex. One building is being re- I next visited Parc de Diagonal Mar which
used, and references are made to the site’s I had also been considering as a study site.
industrial past via interpretive signs. The I had seen many photos of Diagonal Mar
following images are snapshots character- before my visit and read numerous articles
izing each park I visited. The site selection on the wetlands and planning of the neigh-
process was very important to me because borhood. I did not want to use Parc Diago-
I new that Barcelona would have a special nal Mar as a primary study site because the
park, I just had to seek it out, and I did not fountains were turned off and the wetlands
want to discover that park later in my study had little water in them. The park had been
and miss out on such an opportunity. The studied by a previous student in Barcelona
images are arranged in chronological order and was being studied again in 2008 by a
as I visited each park. member of my group, so I felt my efforts
could be concentrated elsewhere.

Upon the selection of my sites I deter-

mined Parc Central to be my primary site
on which I was to carry out my methods
and observations. Parc Diagonal del Mar
and Parc TMB acted as supporting sites
that contained qualities relevant to my
study. After making my selection of sites I
determined that Parc Central would be my
primary study site because it bests suites
my criteria. I assessed that there was not
enough time in the semester to perform
my methods fully at each site, therefore
Parc TMB and Parc Diagonal Mar should
be supporting sites. Each selected for its
unique contribution to my study topic. The
Parc TMB was the first potential study site
I visited, I had high expectations, but was
very disappointed by the lack of users. I
visited the site multiple times, only to find
it empty each time, save for a few teen-
agers. Vandalism was found throughout
the park. In theory the park is unique and
significant, as an exercise in architectural
theory, which is the reason I choose it as
my tertiary study site.
I briefly considered Parc del Clot as a study
site because of its reuse of pieces of old
buildings, and its allusions to an industrial
past, accompanied by thick vegetation and
a small area of stormwater being exposed.
After spending time in the neighborhood
I decided I needed a more contemporary
design.

Figure 3. Sites visited

 December 22, 2008 06
05 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks

POTENTIAL SITE STORMWATER VISIBLE WILDLIFE SUCCESSION OF INTERPRETIVE NUMBER OF US- BROWNFIELD
SYSTEMS HABITAT NATURAL AREAS SIGNS AND ERS AND LEVEL
ELEMENTS OF ENGAGE-
als was meant to allude to its history as a MENT
river. Unfortunately when I arrived at the PARC DIAGONAL
site I discovered much of the park was in MAR h h m h h h
the process of being filled in and paved
over to make room for new development. PARC TMB
What parts were left were not well used h m m l l m
and left to neglect.
PARC DEL CLOT
m m h l h h

PARC GÜELL
h h h l h l

PARC CENTRAL
DEL NOU BERRIS h l l l h m
Although Parc Güell was built a long time
Parc Metropolità de Can Zam is located
ago I was considering Parc Güell and Parc PARC DEL POBLE-
near the Besos River and connected to the NOU m m h l h m
TMB as complementary study sites, to
Parc Fluvial del Besos. It contains large
analyze the stormwater system present in
basins for water and activities related to
both of them. The stormwater system in PARC CENTRAL
water, but like everywhere else in the city DEL POBLENOU h m h h h h
Parc Güell collects water all the way down
the areas were dry. The forms found in the
the slope, channeling it into runnels and
park were innovative and created wonder- PARC FLUVIAL
through the architecture of the site into the
ful public spaces. There were many well DEL BESOS h h m l h m
columns and finally out the bottom from Parc Fluvial del Besos was built for the
programmed spaces, and even when I
the famous dragons mouth. Fòrum Universal de les Cultures. The
visited on a weekday the park was being PARC DEL
heavily used. I might have considered entire urbanized stretch of the river was
LITORAL m l l l h h
this park as a study site if it were not so altered into a more ecological relation-
difficult get to and if the edge condition of ship with its banks. The river is allowed to
the wet areas had plantings. flood unlike many urban waterways, and
the riparian edge is irregular and planted
with native wetland species.

Parc St. Marti is similar to Parc del Clot in

many ways, however it was just to old to
be a viable study site. The design language
is frozen in the time period it was built in
the mid 1980s and much of the park was
run down. It is located in what I consider to
be one of the poorest neighborhoods I vis-
ited in Barcelona, it is bordered by a large
swath of railway tracks and the whole area
feels very post industrial, but unlike the
Poblenou nothing is being done to rejuve-
nate the neighborhood.
Fontsanta park is located in a dried up riv-
erbed far to the southeast of the city. I had
discovered the park in an article published
in the Architectural Review, and was very
hopeful for its potential. It had been built
on a garbage dump, and the design of the
landform and the choice of plant materi-
Parc Central de Nou Barris deals with
extreme grade change and therefore with
stormwater and erosion. I deemed it not
a viable study site because of the lack of
dense natural plantings.
Parc del Litoral is located at the mouth Parc dels Auditories is on the Sea near the Parc Central del Poblenou was discovered
of the Besos river, adjacent to the Forum Forum area and was designed by the world last while on my park search. It was ideally
and many factories. The park innovatively renowned architecture firm FOA or For- suited for my study, and ideally located in
used space to deal with the riparian edge eign Office Architects for the Fòrum Uni- the Poblenou neighborhood which I was
and sensitive delta areas but it did not per- versal de les Cultures it was designed to interested in for its urban renewal strate-
form these functions well. It was poorly create habitat for vegetation while meeting gies. Parc Central acted like a catalyst for
used and sparsely vegetated. The mouth of the requirements for performance spaces. the up and coming neighborhood, which is
the Besos is channeled with riprap. The form creates diverse plant habitat. currently experiencing much construction.

Figure 4. Site evaluation matrix

07 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks
Main and Supporting Sites
M y three study sites, Parc Central del
Poblenou, Parc de Diagonal Mar
and Parc TMB have been carefully chosen
to represent a cross section of new urban
parks being built in Barcelona. They are
also the most recently built parks in the
city, with Parc Diagonal Mar opening in
September of 2002, Parc TMB in the sum-
mer of 2006, and Parc Central del Poblenou
in April 2008. Each park sits in a unique
neighborhood in the city, and each park
was designed with a very different concept
and intent. Each park was designed by well
respected and world renewed architectural
firms, and each firm approached the ideas
of sustainability and the interdependence
of human and nonhuman communities in a
variety of ways. Figure 4 shows the parks
in relation to each other and their locations
relative to important landmarks within the
city. A synthesis of ideas from all three
park designs has the potential to create a
powerful combination of theoretical ideas,
applied knowledge of wetland systems and
remediation techniques for old industrial
sites.
Parc de Diagonal Mar offers unique
opportunities for humans to be immersed
in naturalized landscapes that are full of
life and perform vital processes such as
stormwater filtration and wildlife habitat.
Out of all three parks it fulfills the arenas
of didacticism and ecological sensitivity
the best, utilizing interpretive signs and se-
quential experiences.
Parc TMB contains the most radi-
cal design ideas of all three parks. It is a
performance based landscape that is con-
Parc TMB
Parc Güell
Sagrada Familia
Torre Agbar
Parc Central del
Poblenou
Parc de Diagonal Mar
6, Calle de Jupi
cerned with the channeling of large quanti-
ties of water from the roof of the building
and down from the surrounding hillside
watershed. It is rich with theoretical ideas
and the designer attempts to manifest them
into a built form. Parc TMB is an eco-roof,
located on top of the Transports Metropol-
itans de Barcelona Horta Bus Depot.
Parc Central del Poblenou is the most
cutting edge of the three parks in terms of
achieving a new aesthetic field in land-
scape architecture. It lays out new ideas
for the use of plants architecturally and
the play of color. The approach to light is
very unique with a similar feeling captured
in the designed lighting scheme as is cast
by the trees during the day. Nature is dealt
with in a refined and cultivated manner but
it is far from being horticultural.
Figure 5. Site locations in context.
Methods and Study Process
I began my initial study with visits every-
day to Parc Central del Poblenou. I had
previously established that I would carry
out my methods there, and treat the other
two parks as secondary and tertiary sites.
I began my studies by sketching, diagram-
ming, recording my ideas and observa-
tions. I then performed extensive research
online and through the Parcs i Jardins of
Barcelona about the designers intent and
the physical characteristics of the park
such as maintenance, budget, plant materi-
als, treatment of stormwater and watering
of the plants. I obtained a basemap from
the Parcs i Jardins department in Barcelona
which enabled me to begin recording peo-
ples movements and locations. I then pro-
ceed to a three dimensional inquiry where
I sought to understand how the vegetation
related to the structures, circulation and
spaces. For the presentation of my findings
I have laid out and discussed for each park
under the framework of my study topic:
+ location/context
+ designers intent
+ physical characteristics
+ ecology and sustainability
+ patterns of use
+ diagrams, images and results
+ discussion
Only in Parc Central del Poblenou are all
these sections complete with diagrams and
analysis. For Diagonal Mar I have removed
some of the detail and specificity, and for
Parc TMB I have removed anything re-
garding use patterns.
Because each park is relatively new,
Diagonal Mar being the oldest opening in
2002, it is important to hypothesize about
what impact they might have in the future
on the surrounding neighborhood and city
in general, because urban city parks gener-
ally have a long life span. The spatial rela-
tionship of the users to plants or “nature”
within the park is important because it
shapes user experience and can express dif-
ferent values to the viewer. I was primarily
concerned with areas that appear “natural”
and do not possess evidence of pruning or
other maintenance practices. These areas
can be thought of as “messy”.
These viewer/nature relationships
occurred in all three study sites in differ-
ent ways. I broke down the categories of
relationships into the view being above
looking down upon a natural planting area,
in surrounded by vegetation, down look-
ing up at, and viewing from a distance or
across.
I also focused my methods on spaces
within the parks that contained thick veg-
etation and if that vegetation gave the
feeling of taking over the space. To better
refine my methods I realized that a tradi-
tional empirical approach would not be as
effective when dealing with complicated
factors such as human behavior, and envi-
ronmental factors such as microclimates. I
tried to accomplish more of a systems ap-
proach rather than a traditional enlighten-
ment approach. This manifested itself as
sketching phenomenological qualities of
spaces, mapping human tendencies and
exploring each park as a set of experiences
in a nonlinear way.
As I had learned over the summer
from testing my methods on Yorkville
Park in Toronto, I did not need to know
every persons exact location every ten
minuets, rather it was more useful to un-
derstand general movements and clusters,
and combine that information into a sum-
mary. What I also began to realize once I
began observations, was that people are
very predictable and habitual. As soon as a
person, family or group of people walked
into the park I could tell exactly where they
were going go and what they were going
to engage in. While it is important to al-
low for deviations to the norm, I was most
concerned with the majority.
The area of the most deliberation on
in my methods, was deciding how and in
which ways to observe peoples use of the
park. I felt it was important to have reasons
why I recorded what I did and how. Like-
wise for diagramming space, because I can
sit there and create diagrams all day long
but they have no meaning unless they are
December 22, 2008 08
carefully thought out. From the previous
testing of my methods for observing peo-
ple I knew that I was concerned with loca-
tion relative to physical form in the park. I
was concerned with clusters of people and
I was also interested in primary movement
patterns. I refined these ideas further to in-
clude active or passive recreation, adult or
child (under the age of 13 approximately).
I created the following notation system for
the recording of people on a base plan of
the park.
Active Adult
Passive Adult
Active Child
Passive Child
My diagramming exercises dealt with
the use of framing elements in naturalistic
landscapes, circulation and spatial rela-
tionships of trees, architectural elements
and plantings. The cultural impact and
significance of the park, was researched
through newspaper articles and other pub-
lished forms of media. This was important
for understanding peoples reactions and
opinions on the landscape, when the park
is representing a radical new commentary
on the field of landscape architecture.
Due to a the language barrier, meth-
ods involving surveys or interaction would
not be possible. My methods are designed
to focus on the facts I could observe first-
hand; like user movement and activity.
My methods deal with the observation of
people, diagramming of spaces and circu-
lation. Understanding the neighborhood is
also a part of this process, as the relation-
ship of the park to the neighborhood is vi-
tal in determining its success. It also allows
for understanding where the park will be in
the years to come, and the possibility for
an increase in users and neighborhood im-
provement.
09 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks December 22, 2008 10

Parc Central del Poblenou

LOCATION AND CONTEXT

L ocated on Avinguda Diagonal between

the streets Bac de Roda and Bilbao
Parc Central is in the heart of the Poble-
nou neighborhood. The park is bordered
by the former Can Ricart factory complex
which used to house many craftsmen and
currently has thirty small companies em-
ploying 250 people in the carpentry and
metal working industries. The fate of the
complex is the subject of a large preserva-
tionist debate on how to treat the remain-
ing structures. Directly across from the
park is a recently opened five star hotel,
and next to that a new office building is be-
ing constructed. Occupying the rest of the
surrounding space are housing units rang-
ing from seven to twelve stories tall. The
neighborhood is alive with activity due to
aggressive renewal strategies. The image
below is the Can Ricart factory complex as
seen through a window from Parc Central
del Poblenou.

The Poblenou is home to the 22@ Bar-
celona project which plans on transform-
ing two hundred hectares of industrial land
in the Poblenou into an innovation district
(22barcelona.com). The initiative is a proj-
ect of urban refurbishment and a new mod-
el of how to structure a postmodern city
that no longer relies on industry, but rather
knowledge based businesses. The plan
aims to recover the social and economic
dynamism of the Poblenou that it once had
as the industrial center of the city. It is the
most important project of urban transfor-
mation Barcelona has seen since the Olym-
pics, and Parc Central del Poblenou is part
of this plan.
DESIGNERS INTENT
World renowned and Pritzker prize
winning architect Jean Nouvel designed
Parc Central. He is also the designer of the
Agbar Tower in Barcelona. Jean Nouvel is
known for his innovative color schemes
and unique approach to light and shadow.
These specialties manifest themselves to
the fullest in Parc Central del Poblenou,
with unique plant color combinations and
dynamic lighting schemes. In the words of
Jean Nouvel; Parc Central del Poblenou
is “a gigantic sustainable garden of 5,5
hectares designed as a meeting point, and
acoustic microclimate, playing with light
and shadows” (bcn.es). This statement,
made at the inauguration of the park accu-
rately describes the character of the space.
The primary highlights of the park are its
treatment of sound and the patterns of light
and shadow cast by the vegetation and
lighting features. Nouvel goes on to say
that the park is an “architecture that recalls
calm and quiet, to respond to the customs
and habits of visitors of all ages: dancing
the Sardana1, petanque2, children’s games,
relaxation, long walks and family gather-
ings” (www.elpais.com). He envisions a
sort of contemporary strolling garden, with
a sort of picture perfect family atmosphere.
He speaks of “sitllness” and “non-violent”
games. The space is programed ideally for
this by locating programming elements
such as play structures, basketball courts
and ping pong tables at distances from each
other creating a more private atmosphere.
He pictures the impenetrability of the gar-
den giving an “air of mystery and surprise”
to passerby’s, causing them to enter and
wander around. The wall surrounding the
site blocks many views but offers tantaliz-
ing glimpses into the garden sanctuary.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
The first thing one notices upon ap-
proaching the park is the large wall sur-
rounding the space. The wall is a sore
subject with the neighbors as well as a few
architecture critics in the city. Architecture
critic Josep Maria Montaner says “....the
walls of Jean Nouvel contempt towards the
culture of public space”. He wrote an edi-
torial in the Barcelona newspaper el Pais
which criticized the park heavily calling it
a prison and a waste of money. Jean Nou-
vel speaks of the wall as necessary to avoid
fragmentation in the neighborhood and to
achieve the desired microclimate within
the park. He says “we find that the closure
of the park is the defense against fragmen-
tation” (www.elpais.com). The pedestrian
experience changes dramatically from the
noise of the road to the quiet of the park.
Nouvel terms the park an “urban jungle”.
The wall is most certainty necessary to
keep the noise out and the vegetation that
is taking over the poured concrete walls
will soften the sharp verticality of the wall.
Many negative statements were made be-
fore and right after the park was opened,
when the vegetation was very sparse and
the city was experiencing a severe drought.
The month of October was the fullest I wit-
nessed the vegetation become. And at that
point the wall was completely covered, and
the interior was quite dense with growth.
Without the wall the noise from the three
surrounding streets would make any time
spent in the park almost unbearable. Most
newer parks in Barcelona have a fence
around them, and it could be argued that
a wall is not much different than a fence,
except it does provide a necessary function
under these circumstances. The wall has
windows of varying shapes evenly spaced
every meter or less, which offers views into
the park, and serves to draw people inside.
A fence performs the same function, but the
wall has windows which give little glimps-
es inside and are part of the “garden” idea.
Gardens often have walls, creating a more
private and secretive atmosphere. Once the
vegetation has completely taken over the
wall then it will have a much different feel
within the neighborhood. The park would
be extremely noisy if the wall were not
there, because it is fragmented into three

Figure 6. Birdseye of the Poblenou and Parc Central del Poblenou. Figure 7. Parc Central del Poblenou in context. (google earth)
(22barcelona.com)
3
The Sardana is the national dance of
Catalonia.
4
Petanque is similar to bocce and is played on
a hard packed dirt surface.
11 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks
areas by busy traffic corridors.
The park is organized into thematic
areas, each area having a slightly differ-
ent feel to it, and containing different veg-
etation and structural elements. Figure 10
shows the thematic elements in each area
of the park. For the sake of clarity each
area formed by streets is numbered one,
two and three based upon size. Area one
contains the majority of the programmed
spaces like children’s play areas, ping pong
and basketball. The Placa Sardana is the
focal and gathering point for area one. The
raised Island Under the Dome is a quieter
alternative to the Placa Sardana, and offers
separation and privacy from the rest of the
park. It achieves this by raising the seating
area above the ground plane and screening
views inward with Laurus nobilis. Crossing
Carrer d’Espronceda, which cuts through
the park and through the tunnel of flowers;
is area two. Area two contains the build-
ing that is to be refurbished and used as the
headquarters for the Col·legi d’Arquitectes
de Catalunya (COAC). The herb garden
and a small dog run are tucked away nearby
and the recreation of the old tram tracks is
a main the main thematic element. Cross-
ing yet another street, Carrer de Cristóbal
Lunar Landscape
Bouquets of Flowers
Maple Vaults
Wicker Domes
Placa Sardana
Island Under the Dome
Trace of Pere IV
Aromatic Herb Gardens
de Moura, leads to area three, which is the
most densely filled area. It contains sculp-
tures seating and basketball. In this area
one will find the nests and wells of heaven
and the spiral to Guayaquil. The idea for
the spiral was proposed by the community,
and is meant to connect Barcelonian’s with
people from their sister city of Guayaquil,
Ecuador. Ecuadorians make up the largest
percentage of the population of immigrants
living in Barcelona (wikipedia.org). The
well in the center of the spiral is supposed
to have a video connection with the other
city. However that had not been installed
when I was there. The third area also con-
tains a basketball court.
The company who constructed Parc
Central del Poblenou is also responsible
for the park’s maintenance for the next
two years. This was met with resentment
from the parks and gardens department of
Barcelona. From what I witnessed during
my time at Parc Central there is a general
lack of care on the part of the construction
company. Many maintenance issues were
not resolved, and shrubs and trees not well
cared for.
The custom designed lighting ele-
ments give a similar effect of light and
1 2
Tunnels of Flowers
Spiral to Guayaquil
Wells of Heaven
Nests of Heaven
December 22, 2008 12
shadow (small fluttery patches of light and is sitting down in them. The prevalence of
shadow) as the willow trees give in the shiny materials on the chairs, the lights
daytime. The seating, lighting and detail and the sculptures, amplifies the effects
elements are consistent throughout the en- of a light airy feeling in the park. It also
tire park with circular holes machined into lends a space age feel, which is reinforced
shiny aluminum structures. The sunken by the lunar landscape. Figure 9 shows the
sitting areas (“nests of heaven”) have a main physical characteristics of the park in
strong phenomenological quality when one overall quantities. There are 21,000 shrubs
planted and 10,987 climbing vines. The
vegetation and built elements are basically
Technical Specifications for Parc
set on the flat surface of the park except
Central del Poblenou
in area three, which has the depth of the
Area 50,000 m2 spiral and the sunken “nests”. This flatness
throughout the park allows users to see
Paving gravel (permeable greater distances, creating a greater sense
pavement that al- of security.
lows infiltration of
rainwater)
ECOLOGY AND SUSTAINABILITY
The design was committed to being
Trees Salix babylonian, Salix
Yolk, Tilia
sustainable from the beginning. The ma-
jor areas of importance in this realm are
tomentosa, Schinus
the watering system, stormwater manage-
molle, Tipuana tipu.
ment and maintenance practices. The wa-
Grass 2,500 m2 tering system only uses groundwater and
recycled water. There is a 50,000 liter un-
Water Reservoir 50,000 liters derground cistern that collects the runoff
resulting from the paved areas and it also
collects groundwater. The park does not
deal with any runoff from the surrounding
neighborhood, but at the same time it does
not need any water from the city supply.
The park requires on average 11,000m3
per year, about 100 to 200m3 per week ac-
cording to the specification sheet from the
Parks and Gardens Department of Barce-
lona. An important part of the site design
was the inclusion of a pneumatic organic
waste collection system. The system is
housed underneath the lunar landscape.
The system collects all the products of the
maintenance of the park such as trimmings
and leaves. It also serves the surrounding
neighborhood; collecting the organic waste choices were made using as many native habitat, and also the potential for symbiot-
from each household. In many parts of the species as possible and all species were ic relationships to occur with other plants.
3 city there is an underground pneumatic well adapted to the Mediterranean climate. Also much of the plant growth occurs on
collection system for garbage, recyclables The park is dense with vegetation and walls and other architectural elements. The
and organic waste. The one drawback as a tree canopy which contributes immensely inclusion of the herb garden is a small but
result of the composting area to be located to reducing the urban heat island effect. 3 notable effort at raising awareness of food
within the park is, when the wind is blow- However, it is important to note that while systems and the potential that they have
ing in a certain direction there is a constant there are areas of thick plant growth, most for an urban setting. It helps people real-
unpleasant smell emitting from the area. of the circumstances result in a monocul- ize that they can grow those plants easily
According to the architect the plant ture. This reduces the appeal for wildlife themselves in a front yard or even in a win-
Left: Figure 8. Old building to be refurbished on site. Top: Figure 11. Salix babylonian
Top: Figure 9. Technical Specifications for Parc Centrald del Poblenou. Bottom: Figure 12. Herb garden
Bottom: Figure 10. Main thematic elements of Parc Central del 5
The urban heat island effect is the condition created in an urban
Poblenou. area by the lack of photosynthesizing materials, where the city is
much warmer than the surrounding countryside.
13 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks December 22, 2008 14

dow sill.

PATTERNS OF USE
Immediately upon my discovery of
Parc Central del Poblenou I began visit-
ing the site each day at different times to
determine when the most use occurred.
The patterns I discovered were predict-
able according to the organization of the
Spanish work week. After visiting Parc
Central del Poblenou in the early morning
(8:00-10:00) midday (12:00-1:00), mid
afternoon (2:00-4:00), and evening (3:30-
6:00). I concluded that the evening was
be far the most popular time to be at the
park. The morning usually brings in a few
people going for a walk or walking their
dogs. Occasionally a mother pushing a
stroller and a few children. Midday there
are a few people walking through, a few
people on lunch break, and sometimes on
a nice day there are people napping under
the willows. The afternoon brings much of
the same until around 3:30 people start fil-
tering in and spending more time commit-
ted to recreation. The largest user demo-
graphic by far is families. Even though the
amount of play equipment is limited, fami-
lies dominate the main areas of the park.
The park has a thick vegetated pe-
rimeter condition with the main circula-
tion regulated to the fringes and along the
recreated tram tracks. Attention is focused
inward on the main thematic elements like
the Placa Sardana and the Island Under the
Dome. The trees in the park are planted in
rows and spaced evenly, but the user ex-
periences them in a much less formal way.
Since they are planted in rows radiating
out from the Placa Sardana, one is rarely
in a position where the trees all line up
and appear organized. The unevenness of
the trees size and canopy also lend to the who are faced with the weeping branches like a garden where the upper classes might are meant to represent my work in un-
feeling of randomness and disorganiza- of the willows in their face. The vegetation gather on a Sunday afternoon to partake derstanding Parc Central del Poblenou
tion. The park employs visual techniques hinders a grown persons sightlines but in a in calm sophisticated activities. The park throughout the semester, and how I re-
for spacemaking unlike anything that can pleasant way that breaks up the view and feels very open, with not a single enclosed duced, isolated, and abstracted the space
be found in any other urban park in Bar- creates a feeling of mystery and curios- space, yet it does not feel at all barren or to reconstruct the physical characteristics
celona. The space feels selectively over- ity. The steepness of the lunar landscape empty. of the park in relation to my study topic.
grown due to the cascading effect of the and the descent down into the spiral offer The two above images of have been cre-
plants especially the Salix babylonian. The a sharp contrast to the flatness of the rest IMAGES AND DIAGRAMS ated using photographs from the site and
absolute flatness of the park allows smaller of the park. It is a great strolling park and found online to display the planting pal-
children to see much further than adults, good for weekend picnics or walks. It feels The following images and diagrams let for the shrubs, vines and herbs. The

Top: Figure 13. Trace of Pere IV. Left Figure 15. Plant pallet part one.
Bottom: Figure 14. Nests of heaven. Right: Figure 16. Plant pallet part two.
15 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks
selection of plants for their unique and
vibrant colors is one of the most innova-
tive aspects of the park. The adjacency of
unique color combinations is what makes
the park so unique. Blues and purples are
often grouped together, while reds are left
to stand alone or in contrast to a weaker
color. The plants are also selected for their
hardiness and tolerance of drought. I wit-
nessed one of the worst droughts in Bar-
celona’s history. The entire park was very
dry and the plants showed it. I did notice
a few vines that looked dead and the nests
of heaven were just dirt, when they were
supposed to be filled with plants, but over-
all it seemed that the plants could tolerate
the extreme condition. The above render-
ings were done by Ateliers Jean Nouvel
to show the main thematic elements of the
park such as the Placa Sardana, the nests
and wells of heaven, and the maple vaults.
The renderings are also located on the de-
scriptive signs that are placed throughout
the park at the respective location of each
thematic element. I found the renderings
to evocative at communicating the intent
for the space, but when placed next to the
physical manifestation of the space, the
reality is quite disappointing. The nests of
heaven are a brilliant and forward thinking
Left: Figure 17. Renderings of thematic elements in Parc Central del
Poblenou. (Ateliers Jean Nouvel)
Right: Figure 18. Plant pallet part three.
design idea, creating new possibilities for
seating within parks, but the lack of veg-
etation detracted from the desired effect.
The maple vaults consist of a maple tree
bent in the shape of a vault, and pruned to
grow outward instead of upward. By mid
October they had grown significantly and
one could begin to experience the feeling
represented in the rendering. Figure 19
is a sketch done by Ateliers Jean Nouvel
portraying the Agbar Allusion sculpture.
Top Left: Figure 19. Sketch of the Agbar Allusion. (Ateliers Jean
Nouvel)
Bottom Left: Figure 20. Interpretive sign for the chimney.
December 22, 2008 16
This particular sculpture is an allusion to
the Torre Agbar, which was designed by
Nouvel and can be seen from Parc Central
del Poblenou. There are a series of similar
sculptures that employ wire and steel to
create surfaces for the plants to grow on.
Eventually the plants will become the sur-
face, which I believe is the metaphor being
conveyed throughout much of the park. It
is the commentary of the architect working
with plant materials to create surfaces and
shapes, instead of steel and concrete. One
remaining piece from the sites industrial
past has been left along with the building
to be refurbished, a chimney from one of
the furnaces. Accompanying the relic is a
sign with a rendering that shows the intent
of the chimney to become incorporated
into the canopy of trees. The sign reads:
As a vestige Poblenou’s industrial
past, has been retained in the origi-
nal fireplace, so that is part of the
regular distribution of the trees that
once bound the branches, you must
create a plant roof.
Figure 21 is an example of the sharp
contrasts and use of color found through-
Top Center: Figure 21. Contrast of colors (Parthenocissus quinquefo-
lia and Hedera helix)
Bottom Center: Figure 22. Chimney relic.
Right: Figure 23. Nests of heaven sketch. (Ateliers Jean Nouvel)
17 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks December 22, 2008 18

Usually a small group of

adults or children playing
basketball
Families gather here, let their
children play while they
socialize
Usually couples or small
groups of people walking
around the perimeter
Often younger people sit
and socialize under the Salix
Babylonian
Children often kick a soccer
ball around Placa Sardana
The ping pong area is
always packed regardless of
weather or time of day
Occasionally people will
walk through or sit for a the park is so new, I noticed many people
brief time
Often there is a family or visiting for the first time. It is easy to spot
group of teenagers playing those people because they stop and read
basketball
the signs, gawk at the sculptures and ex-
amine the plantings. The park appears to
suite children very well. They love to run
through the willow trees and through the
wicker domes. There are usually many
children riding bicycles, which the canopy
of the trees just allows for.
One of the most powerful times to
be in the park is at dusk when the sky is
bright blue, and the lights are beginning to
come on and cast small patches of white.
The red of the Parthenocissus hanging over
out the park. The Par- Every area is intensified on the walkways contrasts sharply with the
thenocissus quinque- the weekend sky and the small patches of light. Again
folia shown here can The Placa Sardana often in Figure 26 the unusual use of color is
also be found growing develops into a soccer game shown. The colors of the spiral are green
on abandoned indus- Occasionally people will and purple with the occasional splotches
sit on the Island Under the
trial sites and taking Dome of red. The pavement of the spiral has
over crumbling buildings. Elderly people like this area had purple and green plant splattered and
and usually sit in pairs
Its use in Parc Central del Poble- thrown over it, adding to the strength of the
nou re-links the site to its past and lets dogs. As the evening wears on more people color scheme. The dense massing of the
the viewer understand that nature does During busier times people show up, and right around dusk peak usage colored plants and the strong visual lines
will gather at the bottom of
indeed take over when humans have left. the spiral occurs. On an average weekend afternoon created by the spiral brings peoples atten-
Figure 23 is another sketch showing the there will be a little less than twice as many tion to there beauty.
idea behind the nests of heaven. Three out people somewhere between 150 and 170. Figure 30 shows the vehicular circula-
of the four nests have a sculptural element of people on an average weekday evening number of people in the park. On an aver- Many of the areas that are under used dur- tion around and through the site. It is plain
over them, with plants growing upward to and Figure 25 shows the same on an aver- age weekday at any given time during the ing the week fill up during the weekend. to see that without a wall surrounding the
eventually form a canopy. Light is sup- age weekend evening. The evening (3:30- evening for the months of September and These areas are namely the dome under the park it would be a very noisy environment
posed to be channeled though the opening 6:00) is be far the most popular time to be October there are approximately 70 to 80 sky, the spiral and all of area two. One can indeed. The neighbors had petitioned heav-
in the center, bathing people sitting on the at the park. I performed most of my people people in all three areas of the park. Some always count on the children’s play area ily to not have any streets cut through and
lounge chairs among the flowering plants observations during this time period. As of these people are merely walking though, and the ping pong area having the heavi- fragment the park, but the urban planners
and grasses. Figure 24 shows the massing the days grew shorter and colder so did the and some pushing strollers or walking est use regardless of the time of day. Since of Barcelona identified a great need for

Top: Figure 24. Typical weekday use pattern Top Left: Figure 26. Unique color combinations (the spiral to Guaya-
Bottom: Figure 25. Typical weekend use pattern. quil).
Top Left: Figure 27. Walkway at night.
Middle: Figure 28. Aerial shot taken from adjacent hotel.
Bottom: Figure 29. Seating arrangements.
19 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks December 22, 2008 20

Can Ricart Factory Tunnel of

Complex Flowers

Avi
gu
da
Dia
go
nal

Carrer Bac de Roda,
and claimed that in-
creasing traffic de-
manded that the street No paved walkways
exist anywhere but the
be left open. Bac de perimeter
Roda is a direct con-
nection down from the
Gran Via Cortes Catalans
which is a major highway running
through the city. The tunnel of flowers
bridging areas one and two, is no doubt is
an attempt at unifying the two areas of the mon pedestrian routes through the park. In
park and creating a pleasant environment.
The street narrows as it enters the park, is and on the paved surfaces. The park sees
a common traffic calming technique, and
the pedestrian crossing is highly visible.
The Tram runs along Avinguda Diagonal
and creates an easy connection between
Parc Central del Poblenou and the Diago-
nal Mar area. Parc Central is positioned
directly in the center between two major
shopping areas, Pl. Glories Catalanes and
Diagonal Mar. Figure 31 shows the com-
Carrer Bac De Roda
Trace of Pere IV
A common circulation
route, however the
door at the and is closed
so people have to walk
around the corner
general people walking keep to the edges
many people strolling through, those peo-
ple walk slowly, and stop frequently to talk
or take in the sights. The Trace of Pere IV is
designed to be a primary circulation route
diagonally through the park, and for the
most part is used like one. However, the
door at one end is perpetually closed, mak-
ing for an annoying detour. I recently read
an article on the website of the neighbor-
DISCUSSION
The intent in the design of the park is
that within five years it will have the feel-
ing of being “overgrown”. This is a new
realm of thinking for urban park design as
typically growth is kept in check. Often in
relation to a building architects minimize
the denseness and power of vegetation to
better highlight the structure, but in this
circumstance quite the opposite is occur-
ring. The residents of the Poblenou will
witness over the years the growth of the
parks vegetation, which is in itself a re-
vealing process, amplified by the direction
given to the vegetation by walls, and other
structural elements. The beauty is not in-
stant, one has to be patient.
The CAD drawn sections illustrate
the relationships of the structures to the
climbing vegetation, and in the case of the
spiral the change in grade that is very rare
within the park. In Figure 32 one can see
the subtle swale surrounding the Placa Sar-
dana to collect runoff and channel it into
A commonly
used shortcut, where the main cistern. In Figure 34 people are
no path exists on the sidewalk outside of the park. One
can see the thickness of the wall and its
hood association of the Poblenou that they height in relation to human scale. In Figure
are demanding the door be opened. For the 35 the separateness of the dome under the
most part people stay out of area two, but sky from the rest of the park can be seen
I hypothesize that once the building is re- by the isolating condition of the moat, and
furbished, and opened for the COAC the the change in grade. There are only four
space will see an sharp increase in use as ways across the moat and the sitting area is
a transition space for the building and as a screened by shrubbery.
gathering space for COAC functions.

Top: Figure 30. Vehicular circulation affecting Parc Central del Poble- Top: Figure 32. Section of Placa Sardana. (Ateliers Jean Nouvel) Middle: Figure 34. Section of the exterior wall. (Ateliers Jean Nouvel)
nou. Top Right: Figure 33. Section of the spiral to Guayaquil. (Ateliers Jean Bottom: Figure 35. Section of the dome under the sky. (Ateliers Jean
Bottom: Figure 31. Pedestrian circulation. Nouvel) Nouvel)
21 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks
Parc de Diagonal Mar
LOCATION AND CONTEXT
P arc Diagonal Mar is the focal point for
a new mixed use development on the
Mediterranean Sea near the Forum area.
The entire development is 84 acres with 34
acres being dedicated to the park. Follow-
ing the Olympic games, the city focused
its attention on the Diagonal Mar area and
redeveloping the waterfront for the first
Universal Forum of Cultures held in 2004,
involving debates, themed exhibitions and
the World Festival of the Arts. By hosting
this international event, it gave Barcelona
a chance to revitalize decaying parts of the
city infrastructure, which resulted in the
third largest park in the city being built on
an old railway yard. (EMBT Arquitectes).
The area also has the Centre Internacional
de Convencions (International Convention
Center), which combined with the hosting
capabilities of the Forum area makes for a
huge influx of temporary visitors. The area
was re-zoned to allow for taller buildings,
and commercial development. There is
a large American style shopping mall di-
rectly across the street from the park, and
an assortment of office towers, high rise
condominiums and hotels. The develop-
ment extends to Avinguda Diagonal and
provides direct access from the surround-
ing neighborhoods through the park to the
Mediterranean Sea (EMBT Arquitectes).
The pedestrian and bicycle traffic coming
off of the Ronda del Litoral Promenade
can connect to Avinguda Diagonal through
Parc Diagonal Mar, which allows for safe
and convenient passage between the two
major transportation corridors.
DESIGNERS INTENT
Enric Miralles conceived Parc Diago-
nal Mar using design elements commonly
found in a Chinese water garden. The park
symbolizes a tree that was born from the
sea and that branches out into an open hand,
representing the different paths that we as
humans walk throughout our lives. (Enric
Miralles). “The first sketches for Parc de
Diagonal Mar are lines that above all se-
lect paths of energy, flows that only later
become paths, mountains, water, places for
children”. “Those lines principally indicate
a desire, a desire for a natural world in the
city, reflection of something at the back of
our minds, a garden, paradise”. Diagonal
Figure 36. Parc de Diagonal Mar in context. (google earth)
December 22, 2008 22
Mar contains very architectonic forms, but
they are abstracted forms that can be found
in nature. Enric Miralles was a master at
devising unique architectural forms that
could be replicated over and over again
serving different practical functions, such
as chairs benches, surfaces, sculptures and
edges. He like many great designers turned
to nature to seek the inspiration for the
forms6 of Parc Diagonal Mar.
The design concept connects the sur-
rounding working class neighborhoods of
hundreds of thousands of residents to the
Mediterranean Sea, using Parc Diagonal
Mar as the greenway (EMBT Arquitectes).
Conceived as an abstract tapestry in plan
view, the park is enjoyed from above by
high-rise residents and those staying in
hotels. The plan of Parc Diagonal Mar is
a playful and exuberant mixture of pave-
ments, water and plantings meant to evoke
a canvas of modern art (EMBT Arqui-
tectes). At the Avinguda Diagonal entrance
and throughout the park are precast con-
crete planters that appear to be “grasped” graffiti and pop art. sive recreation area, a childrens play area,
by steel tubular forms, accompanied by the mound, and a dog run. The sports area
trellises with plants growing outward from of the park is distinctly different from the
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
the containers. The planters are covered other areas. It resembles an older incarna-
in a tile mosaic that alludes to the work of The park is organized into six main tion of a typical Barcelona park. There is a
Antoni Gaudí. Looking closely at the tiles areas. The spray fountains, an area for sunken concrete playing field, designated
one can see that they are found objects, sports such as soccer and basketball, a pas- areas for petanque, ground chess boards
Top: Figure 37. Birdseye of Parc de Diagonal Mar. (local.live.com)
Bottom: Figure 38. Cad drawing of Parc de Diagonal Mar in sur-
rounding neighborhood. (EMBT Arquitectes)
6
This idea taken from Laurie Olin on the origins of form.
23 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks
and ping pong tables. The rest of the park
is much more lush and planted in a more
contemporary way compared to the recre-
ation area. The children’s play areas con-
tain the most unique and clever play equip-
ment I have ever seen. There are large,
wide slides on the magic mountain, rope
swings of all sorts, musical jumping boxes
and various tightropes. The area designed
for passive recreation has custom designed
“beach loungers” that are meant to create
multiple sitting and lounging positions.
There are hidden benches and heavily
planted areas that offer privacy and the op-
portunity for reflection. The dog run has
only one entrance/exit and is surrounded
by high thick vegetation. The space is dan-
gerous and rarely used, although compared
to other dog runs in other city parks it is
quite large.
The materials used throughout the park
are concrete and brick pavements, wood
December 22, 2008 24
benches and play equipment, and steel
arbors and fountain supports. Large areas and the city government which governed smaller fountains spray a mist at seen”. The wetlands have constructed
of the park consist of hard impervious sur- the park design, construction, and, now, its low pressure irrigation system water ecotones that transition from always sub-
faces. The surfaces are hard near the mall operation (EMBT Arquitectes). The report provided from the park’s lake. merged to seasonally submerged and then
and Avinguda Diagonal, but gradually get called for sustainable development prin- + Wetland areas around parts of the to an arid habitat. The plants selected are
softer as they reach the ocean. There are ciples, such as balancing human and natu- lake for stormwater filtration. extremely hardy. The first time I visited the
many acute angles which generate dyna- ral resources; respecting interdependence park, the water level in the main pond was
mism but also create awkward spaces that of natural systems; respecting biological + Lake bottoms at two meters below very low and in the other wetland areas it
are difficult to circulate through, and of- and cultural diversity, promoting social eq- water’s surface, allowing ground- was completely dry. The plants were still
+ water to be the lake’s primary
ten discourage people from even entering. uity and economic development; balancing source of water. surviving and when the areas filled back up
There are a few instances where one will short-term and long-term needs and objec- in October the plants were all very alive.
enter a space only to find that they must go tives; and conserving natural resources to + Lake liner protected with a soil cap. The wetlands collect and filter the water
out the way they came in such as the dog + be incorporated in the design of the park from the nearby developments, and wa-
run. The circulation routes are confusing (EMBT Arquitectes). The following prin- + Recycled soil from excavated ma- ter that is pumped out of the Metro tunnel
terials from the adjoining Diagonal
and not visually self explanatory. ciples are emphasized in the report. Mar retail development. nearby. In this sense Parc Diagonal Mar is
highly innovative and is a precedent for
+ Porous pavements that minimize + Grass clippings and other harvested future developments of similar nature. The
ECOLOGY AND SUSTAINABILITY + storm water runoff. vegetation will be composted. act of bringing stormwater to the surface
Ecology played a meaningful role in + Native plants specified to curtail ir- is an important step for the future of urban
the park’s design, which resulted in the rigation and pesticide applications. When Parc de Diagonal Mar won an ASLA design.
first-ever public/private sustainability honour award, the jury made the comment;
agreement in Spain, a pact between Hines + Time-controlled fountains and “the best constructed wetlands I have ever
Top: Figure 39. Conceptual plan, tree branching from the Sea. (EMBT Left: Figure 41. Conceptual plan, map of desires. (EMBT Arquitectes)
Arquitectes) Right: Figure 42. Conceptual diagram, Parc de Diagonal Mar as a
Bottom: Figure 40. Conceptual diagram, the water flowing downhill. Chinese water garden. (EMBT Arquitectes)
(EMBT Arquitectes)
25 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks December 22, 2008 26

Latin Name English Name

Shrubs
Abelia floribunda Mexican Abelia
Buddleia davidii hoensis Orange-eye Butterfly Bush
Cistus salvefolius Rock Rose
Hypericum calycinum Rose-of-Sharon
Lavandula officinalis Lavender
Nerium nana Common Oleander
Pinus pumilo Dwarf Siberian Pine
Pittosporum tobira nana Japanese Pittosporum
Rosmarinus prostata Rosemary
Santolina chamaecyparissus Lavender Cotton
Santolina sempervirens

Aquatic Planting
Butomus umbellatus Flowering Rush
Caltha palustris Marsh Marigold
Iris pseudacorus Yellow Iris
Juncus effusus Soft Rush
Pontederia cordata Pickerel Weed
Sagittaria latifolia Wapato
Typha minima Cattail

Vines
Actinida chinensis
Akebia quinata
Campsis grandiflora
Clematis c.v.
Jasminum nudiflorum
Lonicera c.v.
PATTERNS OF USE Lonicera henryi
The lack of fountains really detracted Parthenocissus tricuspidata
from the number of people in Parc Diago- Polygonum aubertii
nal Mar on hot days. The first time I visited Wisteria floribunda ‘alba’
the park on a beautiful warm Saturday af- Wisteria sinensis
ternoon there were hardly any people using
the space, but the adjacent air-conditioned Grass
mall was packed. Like many of Barcelo- Kikuyu
na’s parks the most well used part is the
children’s play area. Parents gather and so- Ornamental Grasses
cialize while their children play. Children Acanthus sp.
pay attention to the water and wetlands Agave americana
but there is nowhere to easily access it or Anthemis frutescens
directly engage it. The abundance of wild-
Centaurea sp.
life is a great contribution to the park as
Convolvulus cneorum
a didactic landscape. I witnessed a child
Gazania sp.
one day exclaiming to his mother, “Tor-
Grevillea rosmarinifolia
tuga...Tortuga”. I leaned over the edge and
there was a large turtle on the surface of Hemerocallis sp.
the water. Most active recreation occurs in Lavandula dentata
the designated area, which is quite sepa- Mesembrianthemum sp.
rate from the rest of the park that contains Phlomis fruticosa
the wetlands and misting fountains. In the Phormium sp.
main areas the most common activities are Yucca aloifolia
strolling, reading and socializing.
Chinese Gooseberry
Five-Leaf Akebia
Chinese Trumpet Creeper
Clematis
People seem to relate well to the “natu-
Jasmine
ralness” of the wetlands and their “messy”
Honeysuckle
appearance. I have often seen people point-
Honeysuckle ing and discussing various areas. There are
Boston Ivy a number of instances where users can be
China Fleece Vine immersed in the areas of heavy natural-
Japanese Wisteria ized planting, there are a few benches and
Chinese Wisteria seating arrangements that are within the
wetland boarders and draw people into the
wetland. There are situations where one is
encouraged to venture into relative thick
naturalized areas, but there is always a rec-
ognizable human element for reassurance,
Bear’s-Breech most often the defining gabion edge. Week-
Century Plant days have an equally high amount of use
Marguerite
as the weekends. In some circumstances I
have witnessed a greater number of people
Knapweed
in the park on a weekday between 5:00 and
Silverbush
6:00 than on an average Sunday afternoon.
Gazania
It would appear the Parc Diagonal Mar is
Spider Flower more of a weekday park and that people go
Daylilly elsewhere on the weekends. I would ven-
French Lavender ture that it is because the dominant demo-
Icicle Plant graphic of the neighborhood has the means
Jerusalem Sage to leave the city on the weekends. High
Flax Lily rise condominiums attract middle and high
Spanish-Bayonet income couples, individuals and occasion-
ally a family. These people are more likely

Left: Figure 43. Master plan. (EMBT Arquitectes) Top Left: Figure 45. Wetland. Bottom Right: Figure 48. Sketch of the abstraction of the waterline,
Right: Figure 44. Plant schedule. (EMBT Arquitectes) Middle Left: Figure 46. Child interacting with the water. collaged with the gabion.
Bottom Left: Figure 47. Typical interpretive sign. Top Right: Figure 49. Mosaic Planter.
Bottom Right: Figure 50. Sketch of the gabions as a framing element.
27 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks December 22, 2008 28

ABOVE NEXT TO IMMERSED IN

to spend weekends outside of the city, or

at more exciting or exotic locations within
the city.

IMAGES AND DIAGRAMS

Figure 52 is a plan of the tubular mist-
ing fountains. Some are located on a con-
crete paver surface that is shaped slightly
like a puddle. The fountains are designed
to turn on and off intermittently. Figure the user experience. stormwater. It can be seen in Parc Diagonal
51 shows their design in elevation. They Mar that Recreational areas, stormwater
spatially very complicated ideas, as they ponds and wetlands are compatible with
DISCUSSION
transition all possibilities in three dimen- each other. Exposing stormwater like is
sions. They create an identity for the park, I question whether the form of the done at Parc Diagonal Mar creates a pub-
one which now is iconic of the area. All urban fabric surrounding Diagonal Mar is lic amenity that is visually pleasing and
water used in the fountains and for water- potential areas of use for a certain plant. the right thing for Barcelona, it strikes me contains educational opportunities. Parc
ing purposes comes from the stormwater The sign is typical of those found through- more as a North American way of build- Digaonal Mar has entered a new realm of
retention ponds. On the previous page Fig- out the park. Figure 47 is a representation ing. Never the less the park has created a design language. Until recently the use of
ure 50 shows the use of gabions as framing of the typical architectural form that can wonderful greenspace that filters stormwa- gabions would only be considered for en-
elements to separate the hard and architec- be found throughout the park in the seat- ter and respects the natural environment. gineering purposes, such as stabilizing the
tural from the soft and messy. Gabions are ing elements as well as the landscape. Fig- New ideas as to what constitutes an urban banks of a highway. Now it is becoming
a perfect transition element because they ure 54 shows the different viewer/nature park are laid out at Diagonal Mar. The park a new design aesthetic, used frequently in
represent both realms. The natural stone is relationships existing in Parc Diagonal is not only a space for recreation and cul- conjunction with wetlands and naturalized
being constrained by the metal rebar and Mar. Above looking down upon, next to or ture, but it performs important functions areas. The use of gabions in Parc Diago-
turned into a performance oriented struc- across and immersed in. Figure 55 shows in minimizing the impact of the surround- nal Mar creates a unique and recognizable
ture. Figure 47 shows an interpretive sign a similar sequence, where the height and ing development on the environment. This framing element consistent throughout the
discussing the origin, characteristics and construction of a boardwalk can determine is done by using natural systems to filter park.

Top Left: Figure 51. Cad drawing, plan and elevations of the misting Top: Figure 54. Viewer based experiences.
fountains. (EMBT Arquitectes) Left: Figure 55. Sketch, effects of height and proximity on viewer
Top Right: Figure 52. Cad drawing, layout plan for the misting foun- experience.
tains. (EMBT Arquitectes) Right: Figure 56. Wetland viewed from the bridge. (ASLA.org)
Bottom: Figure 53. Misting fountains in action. (ASLA.org)
29 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks
Parc TMB
LOCATION AND CONTEXT
There are unique conditions surround-
ing the location of Parc TMB. The park is
built on the roof of the Horta Bus Depot,
which houses most of the buses for the
TMB (Transports Metropolitans de Bar-
celona). The park is literally at the very
edge of the city. All development behind
the park has ended because the hills are
too steep to build on. The park also acts
as sort of a gateway for the large natural
area behind the city called Parc Collserola.
It is difficult locate Parc TMB because it is
not named on any map, and its location is
not revealed on any website. It is not vis-
ible from any road because it sits at a high
point in the landscape and on top of a roof.
The park is isolated from nearby develop-
ments by the Ronda de Dalt which is a ma-
jor highway. Parc del Laberint is about 500
meters from Parc TMB, but it is separated
by a deep heavily vegetated valley with no
easy connection between the two. The area
in which Parc TMB is located has almost
no housing or commercial development,
while Parc Laberint sits within a vibrant
neighborhood.
DESIGNERS INTENT
Parc TMB is conceived as a water
channeling machine where the physical
form is dependent on a number of per-
formance based factors. Every 40 meters
there is a drainage inlet, and the thickness
of the park changes in each area to meet
the requirements for the volume of water
expected. It is a performance system into
which cultural and human needs are insert-
ed in the form walking paths, skateboard-
ing areas, and picnicking areas. The design
can be viewed as a series of watersheds,
with smooth flat walking paths along the
ridgelines and uneven stepping stones
leading down into the valleys.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
The deck has a thick hollow construc-
tion, and the architects have likened it to
the roof deck of Parc Güell. The features
that make up the surface of the landscape
such as trees, shrubs, benches and small
buildings sit upon a thin concrete layer.
Beneath that is a layer of storage tanks
which run throughout the entire area of the
Figure 57. Parc TMB in Context. (google earth)
park. Towards the middle of the site is a
deeper water collection system with basins
and holding chambers. There is a gradient
from shallow to deep towards the center of
the park, and the surface materials change
as well becoming harder and the collec-
tion basins larger. The water is separated
into different shallow channels and deeper
drains. The surface contains two types of
landscapes a cold landscape of sand, water,
and concrete, and a warm landscape using
grass, groundcovers and colored rubber.
Figure 60 shows the first level of holding
chambers.
December 22, 2008 30
ECOLOGY AND SUSTAINABILITY
Parc TMB is basically an ecological
roof deck. It takes the idea of an intensive6
green roof to a whole new level. It creates
a unique environment with the building,
where the building is virtually underground
except there is only a thin layer of earth in
certain areas, and the rest is a thick eco-
roof. The plantings are mostly native spe-
cies that can withstand drought. The water-
ing system draws water from the storage
facilities and is transferred through a series
of soaker hoses and sprinkler heads. The
trees on site are Cherry, Tamarind, China-
berry, Pine, Acacia, Olive and Holm oak.
There are a few inconsistencies in
the parks credibility as a sustainable land-
scape. Looking around at the surrounding
natural landscape of the hills, one notices
a sharp contrast between the vegetation of
Top: Figure 58. Birdseye, Parc TMB. (local.live.com)
Left: Figure 59. Hills behined Parc TMB
Right: Figure 60. Underground storage system level 1. (José Hevia)
7
An intensive green roof has a thicker soil medium and more load
bearing capability than an extensive greenroof
31 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks December 22, 2008 32

ings, fountains and a labyrinth. I suspect

that if people have a destination in mind
it would be Parc del Laberint and not Parc
TMB.

IMAGES AND DIAGRAMS

On the previous page Figure 61 shows
the stepping pads leading down to a catch
basin. There is a feeling of descent and
then enclosure at the destination. Also on
the previous page Figure 64 shows the
thickness and voids of the construction of
the roof. Note the funnel shaped columns
similar to Park Güell. Figure 65 shows
how the serpentine movement of the step-
ping pads sends the pedestrian on a jour-
ney through the site, creating different ex-
periences and views. Figure 66 shows the
denseness of the vegetation that one must
pass to continue on their way.

DISCUSSION
Parc TMB is a great example of what
potential there is for an integration of land-
scape and architecture, in this particular
the park and the hills. The naturally oc- situation where the building was built into
curring vegetation is scrubby and sparse, a hill, it made a lot of sense to build a park
while the park has grass, groundcovers and on the roof. However studies have shown
full looking shrubs. Much of the park is in that in an urban location building a park on
keeping with the surrounding environment, the roof of a building often results in little
just a few areas have the more energy and use and an increase in activities that illicit,
maintenance intensive plantings. and require privacy and shelter. The impor-
tance placed on the water basins as focal
points reveals to the user what is happen-
PATTERNS OF USE ing in the landscape during a rain event,
Currently very few people use the and that it is a significant event. The step-
park. I visited during the morning on a ping pads often lead down into a collection
weekday, during siesta (between 1:00 and basin, which in some circumstances can be
4:00) and in the evening. I also went on enjoyed as lounging and picnicking areas,
a Saturday during what I would expect to creating a compatible duality of space. The
be peak usage between 3:00 and 5:00. It choice is given to the pedestrian to stay on
became apparent that no one used the park, the very accessible main paths or to veer
except for a few skateboarders and teenag- onto the stepping pads and explore. The
ers hanging out. The location is partly to four circular holes for the water to enter
blame for this lack of use, as well as the is possible that in the future more people will bring in more traffic and connect the each catch basin are symbolic of a drain.
obscure and hidden nature of the park. The will use the park, as the city expands and area more easily with the rest of the city. They denote drainage and a low point. Parc
park opened in 2006 but it appears much the area becomes more densely populated. There are parking spaces adjacent to the TMB is an example current ideas in land-
older and worn down due to a lack of But at the same time it is unlikely because park, intended to make the park a destina- scape urbanism where the landscape is ca-
maintenance and poor choice of materials. the area will never see much development tion. Another reason for a lack of use is the pable of structuring the urban experience
There is also evidence of vandalism on the due to the topography. However there are proximity of Parc del Laberint, which is a and even architecture itself.
rubber surface and some of the benches. It a few tunnels being built in the area which beautiful lush old park with historic build-

Top Left: Figure 61. Path leading to catchbasin. Top: Figure 65. Stepping pads experience.
Top: Figure 62. Plan of Parc TMB. (Coll-Leclerc Arquitectes) Bottom: Figure 66. Denseness of vegetation.
Middle: Figure 63. Shape of surface water channeling system. (Coll-
Leclerc Arquitectes)
Bottom: Figure 64. Construction of the Horta Bus Depot. (Coll-Leclerc
Arquitectes)
33 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks December 22, 2008 34

Comparisons
Quality Parc Central del
Poblenou
Commitment to Sustainability inherently sustainable, com-
posts all plant material
Urban Heat Island Reduction massive amount of plantings
Stormwater Management mostly invisible stormwater
system, but very permeable
surfaces
Ecology monocultures, climbing plants
taking over, many specimen
plants, little diversity
Didacticism in an experiential, sensory
phenomenological way
Type reaching a new paradigm in
urban park design, an “urban
jungle”
in horizontal density and depth.
GROUNDPLANE
Parc de Diagonal Mar Parc TMB in which it is positioned I do not think it is successfully performs the functions it was
the right thing for the neighborhood or the designed for; Parc Diagonal Mar is cur-
city in general. The high cost of the park, rently the most successful, but in the future
balanced with a disregarded for the people Parc Central del Poblenou will mature with
inherently sustainable, natural potentially sustainable but of the neighborhood, makes it an example the Poblenou neighborhood to become a
systems, composts plant mate- employing questionable tech- of trying to leverage political favor using beautiful and vibrant public space. There
rial niques star architects and complicated language are many areas of unrealized potential in
lacking in tree canopy cover lacking in density of vegeta- resulting in a landscape that is a monu- the Parc Central del Poblenou along with
tion ment to the architect, and an opportunity a weakness in maintenance, but I believe
for certain well connected companies and that once the neighborhood becomes more
semi transparent system, also semi transparent system, individuals to make large sums of money. densely populated, use will increase sharp-
collects runoff from surround- handles a large volume of Parc Diagonal Mar is conceived as a ly along with new investment from the
ing development water, negates runoff from Chinese garden but with a new aesthetic city. Parc Central del Poblenou is ideally
TMB building design language. Enric Miralles sketched equipped to be a great meeting place and to
respecting of ecology, diverse lacking in plant diversity, thick the desire lines from the Sea towards host events which it did over the summer,
plantings, multiple types of undergrowth good for habitat Aviguda Diagonal, which resulted in a such as festivals and concerts. Parc Diago-
habitat branching form emerging from the sea. The nal Mar cannot grow as much because the
level of expression in the mosaic planters, form of the surrounding urban fabric will
in a process related way, and displays stormwater as a force
and fantastical misting fountain sculptures, ensure a consistency in user base. How-
interpretive signage
creates a very recognizable identity for the ever the architectural forms of Parc Diago-
neighborhood nal Mar and the conception of the park as a
under the category of ecologi- a precedent for an ecologi- Parc TMB is conceived as an event- whole is much stronger, and more special
cal design cal roof, much more than an space and a controlspace. The sub surface than either of the other parks. It does repre-
intensive greenroof systems actually determine the topogra- sent something on the forefront of design,
phy and visible physical landscape. The with its commitment to naturalized areas
ognizable human element is inserted into
the “messy” landscape.
park has been designed by a set of rules or and stormwater management, which Parc
parameters, which informed the physical Central has pushed underground and hid-

E ach park dealt with the design and

shaping of the landscape in a unique
way. Designing the ground plane is very
important in an urban park, because it is
one of the primary things humans change to
better suite our needs. One must acknowl-
edge that the urban ground plane is incred-
ibly artificial and often in older cities such
as Barcelona has been built upon for many
centuries. In the case of these three parks
creating the landscape is building some-
thing from nothing. They were each a blank
slate to be molded in anyway the designer
saw fit. Parc Central del Poblenou is a thin
flat ground plane with vertical elements
placed on it. Another plane is formed by
the canopy of the trees. The denseness is
experienced horizontally as climbing vines
and weeping branches. Parc Diagonal Mar
uses topography to create experiences and
views. There are mounds typical of what
might be found in a traditional Chinese
garden. Diagonal Mar is both thick and
dense, but broad and sweeping at the same
time. Parc TMB is very thick, with actual
differently functioning layers, but it lacks
FRAMING
Comparing the methods employed by
each park to frame naturalized “messy”
landscapes. Diagonal Mar frames its wet-
lands with hard elements like concrete
and gabions. A balance exists between the
hardscape surrounding the misting foun-
tains and the sunken wetland areas. The
shape of the naturalized areas is vital in
informing the viewer that the area has been
carefully designed with a purpose in mind.
The forms contrived, contain sharp acute
angles and soft round curves. Park Central
del Poblenou uses architecture as a form
giving and framing device. The structures
provide control for the plants to climb on
and create a surface of their own. Board-
ers are created with the thick concrete wall.
Vines climb up rebar, alluding to the sites
industrial past. Park TMB uses stepping
stones to guide users, and paths to frame
different areas. The paths of Parc TMB
slice through the naturalized landscape
and wander toward stunning views of the
city. Each in their own way insures a rec-
CULTURAL SIGNIFICANCE
Parc Central del Poblenou fosters a
similar atmosphere as portrayed in the
painting by Gorges Seurat, Sunday After-
noon on the Island of La Grande Jatte,
where the crowd is well behaved and par-
ticipates in passive peaceful activities like
picnicking, strolling, and socializing. The
activities in the park are dare I say very un-
like many other parks in the city such as
Parc Joan Miro, or Parc Ciutadella, were
there are a wide range of people from the
homeless and drug users, to families and
birthday parties all occurring in the same
space at the same time. The dominant de-
mographic of Parc Central del Poblenou is
families. The park is deliberately designed
to discourage any sort of transgressive
activity. There are only chairs, no place
to lay down other than the ground. There
are no nooks or hiding places, no places
that offer shelter. It is not comfortable to
be in the park except for in nice weather
and for short periods of time. It seems to
be the park city officials dream of. It also
successfully eliminates the age group of
14-21 year old’s, by not providing many
spaces that suite their interests. Park Cen-
tral del Poblenou is a celebration of the ac-
complishments of mankind. Each thematic
area references cultural achievements and
the sculptures pay homage to the creations
of humankind. There is the allusion to our
conquering the moon (lunar landscape),
there is the allusion to industry (crumpled
metal sculptures), there is the celebration
of architecture (Agbar allusion), there is a
prevalent feeling of refinement, wealth and
great accomplishments. My final opinion
of Parc Central is that it represents many
new ideas in urban park design, achiev-
ing a new aesthetic field, and it has in-
troduced new ways to think about plants,
color and space. Parc Central del Poblenou
is conceived as a postmodern, post indus-
trial landscape on which an urban jungle
is born. However under the circumstances
manifestation of the space.
NEIGHBORHOOD
The boarders of each park are treated very
differently. Parc Central del Poblenou is
impermeable and a very permanent feature
in urban fabric. It is a heavily contrived
landscape bordering on a fantasy realm.
Diagonal Mar has the core areas surround-
ed by a fence while some pockets and paths
are left open. It finds its themes more from
the sea, it is cool and expansive. Parc TMB
is completely open, as well as receiving
from the hills behind the site.
Both Parc Diagonal Mar and Parc
Central revitalized their respective neigh-
borhoods. A flat overlooking Parc Central
worth 200,000 euros previously, follow-
ing the redevelopment of the neighbor-
hood now worth double. Parc TMB had no
neighborhood to add value to.
SUCCESS
Thinking in terms of which park most
den away. Parc Diagonal Mar is teaming
with wildlife while Park Central is not.
The difference in the two parks is Diagonal
Mar has a deliberate, direct commitment to
sustainability and making processes vis-
ible to the public, while Parc Central is an
inherently sustainable landscape, much of
which is not readily apparent. Each in its
own unique way epitomizes the forward
thinking policies of Barcelona.
Each neighborhood in the city has a
very distinct character. Parc Central del
Poblenou suites the neighborhood of the
Poblenou well. It lies in an area surrounded
by abandoned buildings and devoid of any
natural resources. It counters this harshness
well with a solid appearance of greenery
that is there to stay. For Parc Diagonal Mar
it offers the feeling of being near the sea,
and the scale and vegetation allude to that
closeness. Each park represents something
new and forward thinking in the realm of
landscape architecture. Parc Central del
Poblenou’s use of color, the wetlands of
Parc Diagonal Mar and the water channel-
ing system of Parc TMB.

Figure 67. Sites comparison. Figure 68. Photomontage of the three parks.
35 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks
Defining Types
An important part of my study is under-
standing what is new and current in land-
scape architecture practice today, and to
have the capability to pinpoint emerging
trends, and define new types in urban park
design. I carefully selected the three most
recently constructed parks in Barcelona
with this intent. Each of the three parks
individually reaches into a new realm of
landscape architecture, crossing bound-
aries and pushing past the norm. Accom-
panying new types comes a need for new
words.
Typologies are classifications. In ar-
chitecture the term “typology” in used to
describe spatial “types” (Franck and Sch-
neekloth 1994). In landscape architecture
types can be a clearing, allee, orchard,
terrace, street, square, yard, and cloister
(Condon 1994, 80). The types defined by
Condon deal primarily with more tradi-
tional landscapes, the most urban he gets
is “street” and “square”. I seek to add to
these types ones that are more relevant to
the current situation within cities as hyper
complex systems.
The absolute flatness of Parc Central
del Poblenou is a reflection of the postmod-
ern period of time which the designer un-
derstands. According to Fredrick Jameson,
a critical indicator of postmodernism is the
reduction to a literal superficiality whereby
all is reduced to flatness. In Parc Central
everything is reduced to surface and treated
like a gameboard. It is a surface on which
trees were inserted and structures erected.
Only in the instance of the spiral is there
a depth and descent below grade. There is
almost no extension below the horizontal
plain extending in ones vision. It is basical-
ly a “tree city” because the sculptures are
structures, some in the shape of buildings,
but with vines taking over everywhere.
Selected structures or patterns of the city
are extracted and the vegetation is made to
conform to the rules of the structure, or on
another level, the cultural rules.
A new type in urban park design deals
with terms such as urban forest, tree city,
or a city within a park. There is a shift
towards a sort of landscape urbanist ap-
proach. Figure 69 is a rendering done by
Field Operations and Stan Allen Architect
called Emergent Ecologies, for the Com-
petition to build Downsview Parque in To-
ronto, Ontario. Taking place in 2005 it is a
key moment in the field of landscape archi-
tecture because it calls for a new “type” of
park. One that deals with trees as buildings
and serves as a catalyst for urbanization.
One that deals with the complicated fabrics
of the urban and suburban. One that must
respect and integrate ecological functions
into the built environment. This new type
of park draws landscape architecture away
from its antiurban tendencies and claims
a more ambitious agenda: to design the
postindustrial city. The Downsview Parque
competition was won by OMA (The Office
for Metropolitan Architecture) and Bruce
Mau Design. The design was heavily criti-
cized by cultural geographers and anthro-
pologists saying it was not public space.
That it lacked the ability to encourage di-
verse conditions, opportunities and activi-
ties. Large metropolitan areas such as To-
ronto create immensely more complicated
landscapes, ones that are based on cultural,
political, and ecological systems, and their
ever changing surroundings.
The designs for new parks like Downs-
view Parque, Parc Central del Poblenou,
Parc Diagonal Mar and Parc TMB are very
much self absorbed. In most cases the ar-
chitect furthers a trend of the times, while
highlighting their own unique design lan-
guage. A product of our times is increasing
self awareness and self absorption. This is
reflected in the landscapes and buildings
we design. Except for a few practicing
landscape architects such as Walter Hood
and Dianne Harris, designed landscapes
Types Inspired by Each Park
Parc Central del Descoveryscape,
Poblenou Tree City, A City
Within a Park9, Ur-
ban Jungle, Urban
Garden
Parc de Diago- Adventurescape,
nal Mar Ecological Perfor-
mance, Aesthetic
Performace
Parc TMB Eco-scape, Tech-
noscape
shy away from plural design. Plural design
calls for the empowerment and participa-
tion of users, respecting disadvantaged
people and an overall democratic land-
scape. In the case of Parc Central del Poble-
nou, the architect is making a monument to
themselves. It is not so much about design-
ing for the people, but rather upholding a
sort of style that we have come to expect
and that will look good for media, publi-
cations and politicians. Parc Diagonal Mar
holds the most true to the architects beliefs
and design ideas, but is caught in a com-
plicated political agenda which softens and
protects the space from being truly public.
Thus new types for urban park design
can be categorized as either self absorbed
postmodern monuments, or as true public
space where a real effort is made towards
community design.
Top: Figure 69. Emergent Ecologies, plan for Parque Downsview.
(Field Operations and Stan Allen Architect)
Bottom: Figure 70. New Park Types.
A City Within a Park is the slogan for the Toronto Parks Commission.
8
Looking to the Future
E ach of the three parks in it own way
represents the direction we are head-
ing as architects, designers and shapers
of the land. Each park furthers a current
or emerging trend in landscape architec-
ture. Including sustainable design, eco-
roofs and landscape urbanism. New trends
emerging in major urban centers call for a
different approach to the treatment of veg-
etation, in the future creating what I would
call vegetated structures. These can take
the form of buildings, roofs, structures and
overhead canopies. Ideas are emerging that
place vines on the sides of buildings, plants
climbing on everything and even farms in
or on buildings. The realm of such designs
could be called Veg.itecture9.
Olmstead believed that beauty could
have performance, he understood the im-
pact that it can have on a persons mind.
December 22, 2008 36
That beautiful places are important for the
public health of city dwellers. I see de-
signers seeking to synthesize the fields of
restoration ecology, civil engineering ar-
chitecture and landscape. It is increasingly
becoming about connecting people to what
is real. Food does not come in packages,
waste does not evaporate. The only reason
we can breath is photosynthesizing materi-
als clean the air and produce oxygen.
Focusing on the performance of the
designed landscapes appearance is a much
more comprehensive and intelligent way
to treat a landscape
“For Olmsted parks performed in two
ways. First they were environmental
cleaning machines, open spaces of
healthy sunlight, well drained soils,
and shady groves of trees reduc-
ing temperatures, absorbing carbon
dioxide, and releasing oxygen. He
believed that the experience of that
appearance of its physical charac-
teristics and sensory qualities al-
tered ones mental and psychologi-
cal state. In other words a particular
form of appearance, the character
beauty, performed. So it can not
just be about ecotechnologies and
making the landscape perform the
ecological functions but also making
it beautiful in a way that is not mim-
icking what one would find in nature”
(Meyers 2008).
Olmsted was so successful in disguis-
ing the ecologically productive landscapes
he designed that their ability to be didactic
or even revealing, was lost in his perfection
of the pastoral aesthetic. New landscapes
will better articulate the performance of
the aesthetic, while being transparent
and didactic. To create a truly sustain-
able landscape designs must be part of a
resilient, adaptive, and regenerative urban
form. Barcelona is a resilient city, resilient
urbanity has the internal ability to persist
and to recover easily without significant
loss from illness, misfortune, attack, natu-
ral or social disaster, or other dramatic dis-
turbances. All three parks are products of
this resilience, pushing the boundaries of
innovation in urban planning, revitalizing
old neighborhoods and becoming texts for
the furthering of culture.
Top: Figure 71. Rendering of vegetated architecture and a commu-
nity. (Ken Yeang)
Bottom: Figure 72. Office building covered in vegetation. (Malcom
Wells)
9
Veg.itecture is based on vegetation as the primary component of
a building.
37 Transparency of Ecological Process in Urban Parks
NOTES
1. Transparency—the ability to see into and understand the inner
workings of a landscape—is an absolutely essential ingredi-
ent to sustainability. From Gray World, Green Heart by Robert
Thayer (1993).
2. Brownfields are abandoned or under-used industrial and com-
mercial facilities available for re-use, but often with environ-
mental complications (wikipedia.org).
3. The Sardana is the national dance of Catalunya (wikipedia.org)
4. Pétanque is similar to bocce and is played on a hard packed dirt
surface, it is one of the most popular games in European cities
(www.petanque.org).
5. The urban heat island effect is the condition created in an urban
area by the lack of photosynthesizing materials, where the city
is much warmer than the surrounding countryside (www.epa.
gov).
6. Laurie Olin said... “Nature has the forms, in our imagination is
their discernment and abstraction”. Taken from Form, Meaning,
and Expression (1988).
7. An intensive greenroof has a thicker soil medium and more load
bearing capacity than an extensive greenroof.
8. “A City Within a Park” is the slogan for the Toronto Parks Com-
mission and can be found on all city park signs.
9. Originally coined by architect Ken Yeang, Veg.itecture is based
on vegetation as the primary component of a building.
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