Historical Background
Little Island was built on the land of Hudson River Park, which was once home to the Lenape tribe during the early colonization of America. The Lenape people used the land to camp, hunt, and fish. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the area became a busy port of entry, serving as a point of departure and return for trans-Atlantic ocean liner voyagers. The only artifact that remains of the land’s rich history is a steel archway, located far away from the park itself.
Site Observations
Little Island is a two-acre elevated park in the Hudson River off the coast of Lower Manhattan. It serves New Yorkers (and tourists) as a natural oasis, community center, and distinctive landmark with exceptional views. However, it fails to honor the area’s history.
It is worth noting Little Island’s “out-of-place” design as it seems to not fit in with the architecture from its surrounding area. The park has an ecologic design that includes a range of plants and wood, which juxtaposes the cold look of the skyscrapers and the industrial warehouses found in the city. However, Little Island’s location, hovering the Hudson River, allows the park to stand out on its own and become a center of attraction to the community and tourists.
Our Critique
We imagine a Little Island that commemorates its industrial past and offers a natural resource to the surrounding community while continuing its presence as a successful tourist destination. In its current state, there is no representation of its rich history as a busy shipping port or key fishing and hunting area for the Lenape tribe. The elevated park feels much like an unusual amusement park built only for tourist attraction and capitalist gain. We hope to transform the diverse landscape artificially manufactured on the Hudson River to feature a community garden of crops and native plants that serves its surrounding community of people and wildlife. Doing so will allow the space’s natural features to be utilized for the people who live there, much like how the space’s proximity to the water was utilized for trans-Atlantic shipping in the 19th-20th century and for hunting and fishing many years before that. The park’s location relative to the rest of Lower Manhattan separates itself from the adjacent cityscape. We hope that by integrating its use into the fabric of the city’s social landscape, it will feel much less out of place and more intentionally situated. Because its structure and landscape will remain as a marvel of civil engineering, Little Island will continue to attract tourists and include them in the area’s vibrant community and rich history as a utilitarian mecca.
The Imagined Future
With the task of designing for the future, we first had to imagine what that future would look like. We imagine a future in which the effects of climate change are central to our lives, even more than they are today. In particular, we expect sea levels to rise to extreme heights, overtaking all structures near or in major bodies of water such as the Hudson River. As Little Island is quickly submerged, the space must adapt to its changing environment to continue to serve its community as a vital piece of social infrastructure.
Today, we see a Little Island made almost entirely of unsustainable and unadaptable materials such as concrete and sod. Instead, we imagine a Little Island that features walkways and gathering spaces made entirely out of a seaweed-mussel-shell composite that rises with sea levels, providing the same service it has since its opening.
Seaweed & Mussels Composite
Materials: Mussel Shells = 100 grams; Seaweed = 16 grams; Water = 100 ml
Step 1: In order to turn our materials into powders for our composite, we must first have a feast! Have your friends be part of this project by having dinner with them. You can cook the mussels to your liking. Get creative!
Step 2: While the mussels are being cooked (or your friends are eating), we can start shredding our seaweed sheets into smaller piecesby hand.
Step 3: After cutting our seaweed sheet, we will use a blender to turn the small seaweed pieces into a powder-like consistency that is easy to mix with other materials.
Step 4: After seaweed has been blended, we can set that aside meanwhile we get mussel shells from our feast. Make sure to rinse them properly to get rid of the oils and condiments from the food. Once that has been done, put the mussel shells on a tray and place it in the oven for an hour at 200 degrees.
Step 5: Once an hour has gone by, it is time to take our mussel shells out of the oven. The oven causes our shells to dehydrate and become thinner, making them easier to break into smaller pieces. Now, place the mussel shells inside a fabric bag and smash them using a hammer into small pieces. Make sure the pieces of shell are small enough to use a blender and turn them into a powder-like consistency.
Step 6: Mix the seaweed powder you created in 'Step 4' with the mussel shell powder using water. Make sure to pour the water in a steady stream, little by little, so that our composite paste does not become runny.
Step 7: After mixing our materials, the consistency of your paste should be thick enough that it can be shaped into any form and hold itself. Once you've created your shapes, you can leave the paste the air-dry for 24 hours or use a dehydrator at a minimum temperature of 35 degrees.
Click here for a more detailed recipe!