Pershing Square
Architect: LEGORRETA
Year: 1994
Location: Los Angeles, United States
Category: Public Space
About
The recently announced competition to redesign Pershing Square, Los Angeles ’ oldest park, will be at least the sixth iteration of the space in the heart of the city’s rapidly changing downtown. Occupying a full city block, what is now Pershing Square (named for the World War I general ) was part of the 1781 Spanish land grant to the City of Los Angeles, and was officially dedicated as a park, originally called La Plaza Abaja, in 1866.[1] The current iteration, designed by Mexican architect Ricardo Legorreta and landscape architect Laurie Olin , with art installations by Barbara McCarren , opened in 1994. Just over twenty years later, the brightly-colored, geometric stucco structures, and the hardscape-heavy layout have faced extensive criticism–one local website is fond of calling it the city’s “ most hated park ”–but Legorreta and Olin’s design makes a bold statement for urban public space in Los Angeles, unmatched by any other park in the city.
Building Info
- Floors: 10
Tags: Concrete, Architecture Classics, Urbanism, Urban Design, Public Space, Square, Landscape Architecture, Park, Concrete, Architecture Classics, Urbanism, Urban Design, Public Space, Square, Landscape Architecture, Park