Windscape Video

Construction was recently completed on the GreenWorks project 'Windscape', which  "...forms a dramatic landmark in the Gateway District of Northeast Portland; an art installation at an undevelopable site dominated by vehicle traffic.  A constructed topography built from the concrete rubble of a major streetscape redevelopment project recalls the rugged slopes and bluffs of the Columbia River Gorge. Bisecting the landform are rows of flexible windpoles, 20 feet tall and laid out in the cardinal directions. The north-south double row symbolizes adjacent 102nd Avenue as it cuts through the landform. The east-west row of poles represents East Burnside Street, as it was the baseline upon which the city of Portland was laid out." The recent installation of the wind poles gave the opportunity, with this past weekends high-velocity east winds, to see how the project was working in action. Landscape Architect Shawn Kummer, who was the GreenWorks designer for the project, shot the following video:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2eREj0lxxw]

"Motion is the key theme of the piece. The windpoles flex, dependent upon the amount and direction of the wind. As a person drives the loop, the view of the piece is in constant movement, as the rows of poles align and then diverge, and the overlapping topographic features rotate, also appearing to move. Stormwater from adjacent roadways will be captured and directed into an infiltration basin on the site which will filter out stormwater contaminants, while also functioning as an aesthetic element that the recycled concrete walls meander through. Douglas fir trees form a contextual backdrop to the piece, creating windows through which to view Windscape and the adjacent development."