BIG SERPENTINE PAVILION
San Jose, CA
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A decommissioned asphalt parking lot slated for redevelopment in San José’s South First Area (SoFA) was the host site of a yearlong ‘residency’ for BIG’s Serpentine Pavilion, Bjarke Ingels’ “unzipped wall” first unveiled in Hyde Park, London, in 2016.
![project-2](https://elysianlandscapes.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/IMG_7506_for-web.jpg)
The structure designed for the Serpentine Gallery’s annual architectural commission was an exercise in geometry, in which a straight line becomes curved space made up of 1,800 identical fiberglass forms.
![project-2](https://elysianlandscapes.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/IMG_7494_for-web.jpg)
Expanding on that concept, the site was reconceived as a dune scape, employing strategies and techniques used to build skateparks.
![project-2](https://elysianlandscapes.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/IMG_7458.jpg)
![project-2](https://elysianlandscapes.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/IMG_1303_edited.jpg)
Lofted sculptural mounds deployed around the perimeter of the site allowed sufficient soil depth and onto a striated canvas on which alternating painted and planted strips traverse the ground to make a bold graphic statement, referencing the region’s geological history.
![project-2](https://elysianlandscapes.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/IMG_7461_for-web.jpg)
![project-2](https://elysianlandscapes.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/BSP_01_color-corrected.jpg)
The BIG pavilion landscape hosted informal gatherings as well as public performances and educational programs.
Client: Westbank
Design Team:
Elysian Landscapes
BIG / Bjarke Ingels Group
GKW Architects
Completed: 2022
Area: 2.8 acres