Today we visited contemporary “greenspaces.”
Superkilen
is located in the middle of a very diverse section of Copenhagen. People from the surrounding area belong to
around 50 different nationalities. The
way Superkilen incorporates diversity into its park is through objects from
different countries including slides, benches, signs, swings and more. It's really innovative and unique to see how different nationalities are taken into account in the design and layout of the park and seeing how it parallels the surrounding community it serves.
You immediately know when you've entered the park when you walk into the "red square" section. Everything ahead of you is the color red or some varying shade. In Superkilen, color helps define purpose. Everything in the first section is painted red and helps facilitate recreational sports and exercise. An example is the metal workout equipment, circular swings, and boxing ring.
You immediately know when you've entered the park when you walk into the "red square" section. Everything ahead of you is the color red or some varying shade. In Superkilen, color helps define purpose. Everything in the first section is painted red and helps facilitate recreational sports and exercise. An example is the metal workout equipment, circular swings, and boxing ring.
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| The star on the post is from somewhere in the U.S. |
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| Funky swings. |
If you keep walking, you eventually walk into the "black market". As you can probably guess, everything there is colored black, grey, and white. This area has permanent chess and checker tables along with funky lines on the ground. This area better facilitates gatherings and socialization.
Lastly, the “green park” section appears beyond the "black market". This section best emulates what we think of as a traditional park. It is grassy with swings and is a little less chaotic than the other two colored sections. However, it is still unique by having randomly placed palm trees,
When
comparing this contemporary park with more historic parks, there are quite a
few differences and few similarities. Østre
Anlæg, a park visited last week, is beautiful and lush with a classic
design. Superkilen is on the opposite
side of the spectrum. There is nothing
classic about Superkilen other than the few awkwardly placed trees in the
middle of the rubber floor and some grass in the green section. Unlike Superkilen, people don’t question the
meaning or purpose of Østre Anlæg because it is very similar to our idea of
what a park is supposed to be. Superkilen
is designed to be extremely busy with children playing and utilizing all of the
space. It doesn’t feel as calm or peaceful as Østre Anlæg which is riddled with
hidden pathways and secluded benches. Østre
Anlæg is not designed to be packed with people. This would take away from the
quiet, more secretive environment that is so special to that park. Though Østre
Anlæg has playground sections too, they are way more predictable than the crazy
and random layout of Superkilen. One
last major difference between the two parks is the age group that each park serves. Østre Anlæg can appeal to any age
group because of the variety of amenities the park has to offer. The elderly can sit on a park bench and enjoy watching swans in the lake while children can play baseball on the blacktop. Superkilen only
seems to appeal to children and possibly young adults.
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| This is Østre Anlæg so you can compare it to the pictures of Superkilen. |
Østre
Anlæg focuses on showing natural beauty by highlighting vibrant flowers, a
large body of water, thick bunches of trees, and diverse wildlife. On the other hand, Superkilen is very
in-your-face, unpredictable, colorful, and a very appealing place to let loose
and have fun.
