Last May, we published an open call for the redesign of the National World War I Memorial at Washington DC‘s Pershing Park, situated between the White House and the Capitol on Pennsylvania Avenue. Originally an element of the 1791 Federal City plan, and then revitalized starting in 1972, the park’s current state is in need of renewal.
The competition, hosted by the United States Federation for the Commemoration of the World Wars and sponsored by the World War I Centennial Commission, received over 350 entries. While these entries did generally follow the guidelines they were given, most of the designs incorporated the complete demolition of the park.
Now, because the park is one of the most significant works of Modernist landscape architect M. Paul Friedberg, with planting plan designs by Oehme, van Sweden & Associates, landscape architecture organizations like The Cultural Landscape Foundation are speaking up against the possibility of demolition.
In an article by ARCHITECT Magazine, president and CEO of The Cultural Landscape Foundation Charles Birnbaum discusses “the significance of Pershing Park, and how the 350 contenders for the design competition do not reflect that.”
Read the full interview, and learn more about the history and restoration of the park, here.
News via ARCHITECT Magazine and The Cultural Landscape Foundation.
