“As the premier venue in St Louis for music and visual art, we are
excited to utilize the outside of our building to present a new,
unique and architecturally significant piece of art to the
neighborhood and community,” says Anne Bannister, SHELDON ARTS
FOUNDATION BOARD CHAIR. “Its VERTICAL GARDEN’s unique web-like
steel structure creates a lyrical pattern which will be overgrown with
a rich variety of horticultural textures and colors, ever changing
throughout the seasons.”The centerpiece of the plaza is a
three-story, 208-foot long vertical garden along the entire west wall
of The Sheldon’s Emerson Center building, designed by Andrew Colopy
of Colbalt Office, in collaboration with Ben Gilmartin. The garden’s
sculptural wall is constructed from steel panels, laser-cut in an
organic filigree pattern, with steel and fabrication generously
donated by Kathy and Robert Williams, Jr. of Williams Patent Crusher.
The project’s landscape architect, DLANDstudio, Inc., in
collaboration with Scott Woodbury, director of Shaw Nature Reserve
(part of Missouri Botanical Garden), have designed the garden to
flourish year-round, with native Missouri vines chosen specifically to
survive St. Louis’ hot summers and harsh winters. The plants will
grow up and onto the steel panels, creating an architectural sculpture
and urban green space. LED lights are placed in over 200 connecting
nodes to create a magical effect at night when the vertical garden is
lit.
“The vertical garden is the result of close collaboration between
designers and engineers, a one-of-a-kind structure only possible
through computer-aided design and fabrication,” says Colopy. “More
importantly, it is a beautifully irregular array of steel and
vegetation set in contradistinction to the building beyond — a new,
greener side of The Sheldon.”
Environmental Impact
The garden was constructed using environmentally friendly design.
Space saving and sustainable, the vertical garden and surrounding rain
gardens and landscaping add green space to The Sheldon’s urban
environment. Bio-retention areas and bio-swales, made possible by a
Project Clear grant from the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District,
will divert storm water from the city sewer system. Vertical gardens
(or green walls) have been shown to filter air pollutants and absorb
CO2, improving the air quality of its surroundings. The use of native
plants increases these benefits, with the additional outcomes of
eliminating the use of pesticides and fertilizers, and providing
efficient water usage — the garden in Steward Family Plaza is
expected to divert almost half a million gallons of storm water per
year. Green walls also help lower the “urban heat island” effect,
and act as natural insulators, leading to decreased energy use to heat
and cool the attached building. Krista Bentson of DLANDstudio says,
“The Sheldon plantings demonstrate that aesthetic desires can
coexist with the functional; that a landscape using native plants and
providing stormwater capture can also be modern and verdant.”
“Even at the scale of a plaza there is potential for larger scale
ecological impact,” adds Susannah Drake, founding principal of
DLANDstudio. “Our team worked closely with the Missouri Botanical
Garden to select plantings attractive to Monarch butterflies and other
pollinators to strengthen migration corridors through the central part
of the United States.”
Scott Woodbury of Missouri Botanical Garden adds, “The practice of
native landscaping is still in its infancy and there is a need to help
landscape planners, contractors and educators on how best native
plants may be used. There is more to gardens than beauty. When
interpreted well, landscapes that incorporate native plants inspire
conversations about natural history, ecology and the role people have
in supporting biodiversity.”
Join dozens of art venues and conservation sites Celebrating Spring in
St. Louis! Download the free StL Arts Chamber app from Apple and
Google Play Store to keep up with all of the opportunities with
locations, maps, schedules and more.
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06/06/2020 Last update