Short Writing Assignment #4: Central Park

In the mid 1800’s advocates, consisting primarily of wealthy merchants and landowners,  called for the creation of a park like the public grounds they admired in London and Paris. By 1857, the landscape architect Frederick Law Olmstead and designer Calvert Vaux won the competition to construct the park we know as Central Park.

While designing the park, a “naturalistic” style of design, admired from the English, was incorporated. Several circulation systems such as pedestrian walks, carriage drives and equestrian paths were weaved into the park allowing for slow meandering without risk of traffic between either users. This consideration allows those circulating throughout the park the chance to stop and at their own pace capture the scenic views and landscape of the park. These views can be seen in areas of the park such as the Mall, where several species of trees, that were brought over from different places,  can be seen as you walk down it’s lengths. While some of these views/ landscapes were man-made, there are aspects of the park that naturally occurred such as the bedrock shooting up from glaciers long ago. Left intact perhaps to further enforce the idea that the whole park and all of its features are “natural.” Another design of the park that impacts its visitors are the grand open spaces of grass such as the Great Lawn and the Sheep Meadow. These areas help create spots where, as intended, people can relax while being there.

Several of Central Park’s features are remarkable however there are a few in particular which I believe to be notable— the terrace that leads into the Bethesda Fountain and the pond behind it. The episodic moment that occurs from these three areas being so close to one another creates the perfect getaway from the urban world and its everyday things. The fountain is centered right beyond the terrace, standing twenty-six feet tall catching the eyes and attention of anyone coming through. Just being under the enclosed part of the terrace, exposes users to a different design/style than that which is experienced/ seen at the Belvedere Castle and the Dairy. Even though the pond and all the staged waterfalls within Central Park were man-made, they still replicate scenic elements that can only be observed in far rural areas successfully. This integration of views found within nature, along with areas for leisure, makes Central Park a grand green space that victoriously provides an escape from the urban world.