Carla Clark | For The Republic Naomi Fassil, Philip Syvertsen and Sara Zewde present their installation Echoes of the Hill in Mill Race Park during the Exhibit Columbus tour, Columbus, Ind., Saturday, August 26, 2023.
Children on kick-scooters, dogs on leashes, toddlers in strollers and an estimated 300 people on foot all absorbed something of a meandering mile and a half of architectural insight amid Saturday morning dew — all as the Exhibit Columbus architectural exhibition unfolded in its first public tour throughout the downtown.
And while national and international designers of the event’s 13 outdoor installations all included some technical background and inspiration for their pieces to be on display through Nov. 26, they also did something that Exhibit Columbus organizers have advocated especially in recent years: They built humor and humanness into their brief presentations to create yet another connection with their local audience.
That was evident right from the tour’s opening at the first stop — “PIPE UP!” the screaming pink and other vibrantly colored installation next to Hotel Indigo on Brown Street. The water-oriented work is from University Design Research Fellows from The Ohio State University Austin E. Knowlton School of Architecture and Iowa State University School of Design.
When designer Shelby Doyle took the mic, she expressed one hope that fit perfectly with a smash movie still in the pink just a few short blocks away at YES Cinemas.
“We hope you’ll take your Barbie selfies here,” cracked Doyle as the crowd laughed.
The heavy family aspect of the tour crowd also was symbolic. Because Exhibit Columbus organizers have worked tirelessly since the biennial exhibition began in 2017 to position it in every way as family fun with activities aimed at everyone from preschoolers to parents.
And Saturday’s activity schedule for the opening of “Public By Design” was filled with free offerings such as music, games such as bocce, children’s storytime and more. But the public tour amid overcast skies and comfortable mid-70s temperatures kicked it all off. And the architects seemed to exult in a chance to speak directly with residents about their efforts focused since early in the year.
Designer Sara Zewde of New York’s Studio Zewde particularly got the crowd’s attention when she stood at Mill Race Park underneath her sprawling, red bamboo skeleton called “Echoes of the Hill.” Her work refers and connects to landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh’s amphitheater hill meant to symbolize Indian burial mounds. She reminded listeners that this is the park’s 30th anniversary — and that Van Valkenburgh was her architecture professor years ago.
One could hear her listeners slightly gasp at the connection.
“What we decided to do was echo the hill and extend the activation and the memories and the fondness that you all have for the hill into the (adjacent) field to talk about what the field could be in its future,” Zewde said. “And we wanted to come up with an activation and a design that could be used as a kind of festive backdrop for the Columbus Pride Festival and the upcoming hospice concert and all the great events that happen here in the field — but also wanted to open it up for everyday use.”
As much as the bulk of Exhibit Columbus installations are temporary, a number of pieces have remained since the beginning. Chris Marcinkoski, who designed “THE PLOT PROJECT” around the park’s Mill Race Center, created brightly colored pavilion-style benches that will remain after the exhibition. Seeds from the wildflowers and wild grasses project also will remain.
A few blocks away, the tour stopped at “Prisma,” at the Cummins Inc. west parking garage. University Design Research Fellows Esteban Garcia Bravo and Maria Clara Morales created the electronic light-up pathway of sorts as whimsical, nighttime entertainment in response to a research study recently done showing that the city’s after-dark time features little to draw residents downtown.
“So we were like, okay, we can do something about bringing people again to the downtown and making it a place for enjoyment,” Garcia Bravo said. “So I would like you to also come at night to enjoy.”
