Ricardo Scofidio on the High Line in New York City
Excerpt from the documentary Diller Scofidio + Renfro: Reimagining Lincoln Center and the High Line (2012), in which architect Ricardo Scofidio discusses the inspiration and development of the design for the High Line in New York City.
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Transcript
[Music in]
RICARDO SCOFIDIO: It was really important for us to keep it simple and then allow the structure itself to survive and breathe and be understood.
The first time I came up here, I discovered the plants were incredibly opportunistic: where there was sun you had one kind of grass that was growing; where there was shade you had a different plant that was growing. When we started thinking about the design, we realized that we could be as opportunistic as the plants. Where there was sun, we said, "Ah, this is a place for sunbathing." When it crossed 10th Avenue, it was just too juicy a moment to not remove some steel and make a sunken overlook.
Initially, DOT (Department of Public Transportation) wanted us to put eight-foot-high fences at every street crossing. And so we thought, well, why not dive down so that you're way below the railing height, but also open it up to the traffic.
ELIZABETH DILLER: The sunken overlook is a very strong--it's a very strong gesture. Not only setting up a consensual space of observation and performance, but also it frames something that is normally thought of as extremely banal.
RICARDO SCOFIDIO: It's a bit like looking into a fireplace: you sit there, and you watch the cars, and you watch the red taillights. After a while your mind escapes to some other place.
MARK WIGLEY: I mean, it reminds you of these Andy Warhol films of people sleeping. There is nothing to see. But the world's most boring street is now unbelievably exciting. Why? Because you can sit above it and look at it, which you can't do anywhere else in New York. The High Line is simply a way to make you see your world differently.
[Music out]
RICARDO SCOFIDIO: It was really important for us to keep it simple and then allow the structure itself to survive and breathe and be understood.
The first time I came up here, I discovered the plants were incredibly opportunistic: where there was sun you had one kind of grass that was growing; where there was shade you had a different plant that was growing. When we started thinking about the design, we realized that we could be as opportunistic as the plants. Where there was sun, we said, "Ah, this is a place for sunbathing." When it crossed 10th Avenue, it was just too juicy a moment to not remove some steel and make a sunken overlook.
Initially, DOT (Department of Public Transportation) wanted us to put eight-foot-high fences at every street crossing. And so we thought, well, why not dive down so that you're way below the railing height, but also open it up to the traffic.
ELIZABETH DILLER: The sunken overlook is a very strong--it's a very strong gesture. Not only setting up a consensual space of observation and performance, but also it frames something that is normally thought of as extremely banal.
RICARDO SCOFIDIO: It's a bit like looking into a fireplace: you sit there, and you watch the cars, and you watch the red taillights. After a while your mind escapes to some other place.
MARK WIGLEY: I mean, it reminds you of these Andy Warhol films of people sleeping. There is nothing to see. But the world's most boring street is now unbelievably exciting. Why? Because you can sit above it and look at it, which you can't do anywhere else in New York. The High Line is simply a way to make you see your world differently.
[Music out]
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