Garema Place, Canberra

Designed by CONTEXT, the pop-up park at Garema Place was a social experiment as part of the 2016 International Festival of Landscape Architecture: Not in My Backyard. It ran for 8 days at Garema Place, in the heart of Canberra, ACT. Garema Place is a largely underused and decrepit plaza space surrounded by cafès, shops and workplaces. A bright pop-up park featuring colourful movable seats, lawn, a library, and lighting was built to attract people and make the area more family-friendly, on a limited budget. Three timelapse cameras were installed to observe and compare data on how people interacted with Garema Place before and during the experiment.

Location:
Canberra, ACT
Client:
ACT Government
Duration:
2016 – 2018
Awards:
AILA NSW Landscape Architecture Award for Community Contribution
Team:
Street Furniture Australia

CONTEXT was also invited by ACT Government to provide a concept for an experimental place making and landscape installation for Woden Town Square – a dated and highly under-utilised public space at the heart of the Woden Valley District. With the key aim of activation and regeneration of the space, the 6 month installation comprises 5 zones – a central lawn with stage and performance space, an alfresco dining area, a work hub with communal workspaces and meeting facilities, a community and social lounge, and an active play space. Key features located across the zones include ‘smart’ furniture, allocated spaces for food truck/pop-up food and drink vendors, and prefabricated structures for work and meeting spaces.