Park[ing] Day Is Near
Park Day 2017 is almost here! What is parking day you may ask?
“PARK(ing) Day is an internationally recognized event where parking spots in various cities and towns are transformed into pocket parks and parklets.” -NCDC
And Smith Gee will participating on September 15th, 2017 in the same spots as last year, right in front of Broadway Brew house!
In honor of this event, we thought it would be fun to post a little info sheet about our PARK(ing) day adventure last year. Enjoy!
(Smith Gee won the Golden Cone last year!)
How many years has SGS participated in PARK(ing) Day?
Smith Gee Studio has participated for the past four years.
What was our theme?
Our theme plays off the unofficial title of Nashville as “Crane City”, considering the influx of development and the skyline perched with dozens of cranes. As a reminder to our growing town and to inform them of the future of this city, our installation will involve hundreds of hanging paper origami cranes (the birds) that passerby can meander through. There will also be a map of the current projects underway in the city, as well as an interactive installation where the citizens can learn to fold origami and hang them with their written wishes for future Nashville.
What was the reasoning behind our theme?
We are excited about where Nashville is heading! With so many people flocking in, and so much development going up, we believe we should honor that energy, and teach people about their new neighbors. Also, a few hundred hanging cranes ought to be a beautiful scene.
Why is Park(ing) Day important to us?
PARK(ing) Day is a healthy reminder every year, why we as designer and space-makers enjoy doing what we do and how we can share it with our citizens. As we promote public space and slow down the pace of the rush of downtown walkers, we can touch on a variety of subjects and issues related to design, green space, human interaction, etc. all while having some fun.
How does our theme relate to the importance of the event?
Our theme, playing off of the crane, will invite passerby visually and teach them of the exciting development happening around them. I believe anyone that has stepped outside in Nashville, has seen a crane in their view, and wondered what’s going on there. It’s important to be informed of all this change and be inspired by the rising infrastructure.
What knowledge or experience do you wish visitors of your parklette to take with them?
We wish that visitors will be delighted by our installation, that kids will enjoy folding origami, that they will be knowledgeable of the boom of development, and that, along with all of the other amazing parklettes, they will fall in love with Nashville and its beautiful and innovative public spaces.
What activities do we have?
-People can fold/ color simple origami at the tables.
-People can write their wishes for future Nashville on origami and hang them.
-Kids can grab mini paper cranes from the water pool for mystery prizes.
-Take pictures with our “?Big Bird” and hashtag us!
How did we design/ build our installation
-The SGS team folded over 300 cranes with recycled blueprints and hung them with fishing wire.
-We built the walls with 2×4’s and cut bamboo to fill in the chicken wire.
-We built a 7’ foam insulation origami crane
Thanks for reading! See you September 15th at 2017 PARK(ing) Day!
