Beacon Park
“Education is the movement from darkness to light” Allan Bloom
CIRCULATION: THE RIBBON PATHWAY The Red Ribbon is a symbol of awareness for HIV/AIDS, and compassion for those inflicted by the virus. It is superimposed on the St. Vincent triangle as both Icon and Narrative. Using space and light as allegorical devices, the ribbon pathway weaves together the depressed, narrow, dark, and cool space of the north with the elevated, open, illuminated and warm space of the south, an allegory for the journey of HIV awareness from dark origins, tainted with ignorance, fear, and prejudice to a present that is armed with education, awareness and compassion in the fight for a brighter future. VEGETATION: EVERGREEN A south-west sloping meadow, oriented towards maximum solar exposure is bordered by naturalistic planting of evergreen perrenials, shrubs, and trees. The sunny meadow is a gathering space, its triangular shape symbolic of the site’s significance in LGBTQ history. Evergreens are a symbol of resilience in the face of adversity, holding on to their foliage through the extreme climate of winter. TOPOGRAPHY: SUBLIME The AIDS epidemic is at a greatness beyond all possibility of calculation, measurement or imitation. It has affected every corner of society, in every corner of the world. As a memorial to the 100 000 New Yorkers who have tragically succumbed to the HIV virus, a combination of mounds and depressions expand the physical and psychological scale of the site and diminish the relative size of the visitor. LIGHT: BEACON Clerestory structures will naturally illuminate the Education Centre below by day. By night the clerestories will be lit artificially, illuminating both the educaiton centre below and the ribbon pathway above. Like a beacon, the iconic pathway will “spread the word” beyond the boundary of the site to the thousands of onlookers glancing downward from their high rise dwellings. GALLERY: EDUCATION Education remains the essential weapon in the battle against the HIV pandemic. Withough education, the destructive cycle of ingorance, fear, stigma, prejudice and ultimately silence cannot be broken. Silence can be deadly, as it not only perpetuates taboo, unsafe sex through misinformaton and mythology, but delayed treatment, and transmission of the virus unknowingly. “It is bad enough the people are dying of AIDS, but no one should die of ignorance” - Elizabeth Taylor
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KEY 1. The Grotto 2. AIDS Education Centre/Gallery Entrance 3. Mechanical Room 4. Access to St. Vincent Condominum/ Subway 5. Entrance Plaza 6. The Grove 7. The Meadow 8. Ribbon Pathway/Jogging Circuit 9. Evergreen Garden 10. Overlook into Grotto N 0 10
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THE GROTTO The path of awareness begins in the Grotto, on the north side of the triangle. It is a narrow, depressed, cool and shaded space, bounded by fernclad shale walls. The crevice frames the St. Vincent Hospital Complex with Holy Cross, the site most associated with the AIDS crisis in New York City, inviting meditation and reflection. THE GROVE Space begins to open and light begins to filter through a canopy of White Pine trees on the East side of the triangle, as the visitor makes an ascent through an understory of lush broadleaf evergreen trees and shrubs. Evergreens are a symbol of hope and resilience in the face of adversity.
THE MEADOW The ascent up the Grove of evergreens excites the senses by revealing a triangular south-west sloping meadow basked in warm sunlight. It is a hopeful and comforting finale to the narrative sequence of spaces, an urban oasis enclosed by lush evergreens, inviting visitors to immediately engage with it.
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