Vimy — Vedad Haghighi

Project Brief:

In November 2018, the Vimy Foundation unveiled the Vimy Foundation Centennial Park, located on lands immediately adjacent to those of the Canadian Vimy Memorial National Historic Site on Vimy Ridge, in northern France. The Vimy Foundation aims to introduce a water feature in the central area of the park and to unveil it in 2020…

…Within the Vimy Foundation Centennial Park, the central area is an area designated to accommodate a relatively low artistic component located in a foreground view of the Vimy Memorial. It is proposed that this artistic component incorporate water and be, therefore, a ‘water feature’. It is to be noted that the geometric form ‘the circle’ is a key unifying symbol for the park.”

Project Abstract:

"When we look at objects or buildings that seem to be at peace within themselves, our perception becomes calm and dulled. The objects we perceive have no message for us; they are simply there. Our perceptive faculties grow quiet, unprejudiced, and unacquisitive. They reach beyond signs and symbols; they are open, empty… Here, in this perceptual vacuum, a memory may surface, a memory that seems to issue from the depths of time. Now, our observation of the object embraces a presentiment of the world in all its wholeness because there is nothing that cannot be understood.”

⎯ Peter Zumthor, Thinking Architecture

The proposed design builds on the wealth of symbolic gestures of the site. It draws the visitor forward towards the monument and creates a moment of pause in the centre of Centennial Park. Its presence is tranquil but arresting, changing in quality with the weather and the seasons. It calls upon visitors to reflect on the past, present, and future of this site.

The water feature is a five-metre disc of black granite flecked with copper, bisected by a narrow copper channel. It sits in the centre of the park's circular gathering space and its diameter is one quarter of that whole, reflecting the pattern of concentric rings of four. It fits neatly within the boundaries of the two converging paths that cross the circle. The division of the stone panels that make up the disc into a pattern of quadrants also refers to this pattern of four to represent the four Canadian battalions that took part in the battle. The division of the circle into two halves joined together in unity represents the friendship between Canada and France. Compositionally, the tiling of stone panels across the disc is a study in tension and unity. The four square panels ground the composition, and the grid they form stops at the circumference of the circle but reaches outward, unfinished but whole.

Water wells up from the central channel and flows in a thin film across the surface of the disc. Refraction and reflection shift observers' perception of their mirrored surroundings. The channel itself is deep and asymmetrically faceted to subtly reinforce the anamorphose effect of the park's angled pathways. Water flows over the edges of the disc into a channel around its base, which is lined with copper and protected by a copper strip protruding above the level of the ground.

The reflective surface of the disc changes with the site and the seasons, day to day and year to year. As the Vimy Oaks grow to their full maturity, their canopies become part of the reflection and part of the feature. A person visiting the memorial may find that they never experience the disc the same way twice; instead, they see something new in the reflection each time they visit. The feature draws attention away from itself, placing the emphasis on the surrounding land and sky, and the meditations that this experience might provoke in the visitor.

The water feature is designed as a mediator, a neutral presence that opens visitors up to the experience of the monument, the trees, and the landscape. It invites visitors to reflect on what it means to be in this place. The disc captures something ephemeral from its surroundings; a small mirror showing a small fragment of something invisible.

Framework and Process

The following are excerpts from the presentation made to the jury on February 11th, 2020, in Toronto which discusses the design process and intent

Peace Through Reflection

A neutral presence that reflects the monument, the oaks and landscapes, a reflective black disc bisected by a narrow copper channel creates a moment of repose in the center of the park. It invites its visitors to reflect on what it means to be in this place.

Our Goals

Inspired by the idea of reflection, we questioned how an intervention could not only physically reflect its surroundings but encourage self-reflection. Having an interest in the passage of time and the interplay of the object with its surroundings, we considered the cycles of seasons and the slower cycles of growth and change as the oak groves grow and mature. We wanted a design that participated within the established symbolism and symbolic languages within the site that reiterates its story without text or markers.

As a mediator, it was important for a design to be a counterpoint that, rather drawing attention to itself, would amplify one’s experience of the park, its landscape, and the monument. In order to do so, a design that was accessible to all was critical. We decided on a low elevation that allowed everyone, whether on foot or in a wheelchair or other mobility device, to participate equally in the act of reflection – a reflection that is dynamic as one walks towards the disc (wherein the monument and landscape are reflected) and, as they look down at the surface, see their point of view shift upwards into the canopy around them.

Experientially we thought about how those with visual impairments may approach the disc, and how perimeter copper channel acts as a guide for them to navigate the space. We thought about how it might feel to stand next to the disc and hear the faint sound of flowing water receding around its circumference, to feel the coolness of the vapour rising off its surface on the one side and hear the wind in the branches of the oaks and the songs of birds on the other.

We imagined how it might feel in winter when the disc is a still, silent centre surrounded by the soft sounds of footsteps in the stone dust and the murmur of conversation.

History in Conversation

We started our process with a period of research including one particularly formative visit to the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa. We met a veteran volunteer there, Pierre Sénécal, who shared his stories about the Vimy Memorial. One memorable occasion he shared was when he drove the Canadian ambassador to visit the memorial. When he arrived at the embassy he asked:

Mr. Ambassador, where are you going today dressed in a suit and tie?
The Vimy Memorial, of course, why?
Not like that you’re not. Do you have an overcoat sir?
Yes.
Do you have galoshes?
Yes.
Do you have a hat?
Yes.
Well put them on!

Pierre taught us not to discount the atmosphere around the memorial. He described it as a cold, rainy, misty place. His advice was that if it’s a beautiful day there, you should take all the photos you can get because it won’t last long.

This encounter impressed on us the importance of Centennial Park as a place to gather and share these memories. We wanted our design to contribute to this space where people could pause and share stories. This was pertinent when we explored the scale of our design.

How could it give people space to approach?
How could it balance the distance of mourning and memory with the connections between people who find themselves comfortably gathered in the same place, whether open to sharing and dialogue, or simply alone together?

Talking Through Drawing

We followed a highly collaborative design process pursuing these goals through conversation and drawing together. All aspects, whether formal investigations, experience through approach and scale, as well as explorations on construction methodologies were done in like manner.

Real Materials & Real Scales

We used actual materials we wished to use to test our ideas, while shifting to 1:1 scale to make informed decisions about dimensions, and to test experiential phenomenon. We tested patinas on samples of copper, brass, and bronze, used samples of black granite from a local quarry to test the reflectivity of water on its surface.

Understanding

Because of the highly specific nature of the site and the formal simplicity of the object, we opted against out-of-the-box digital solutions to represent our design. We used digital tools alongside physical tests to model the qualities of reflectivity and hand sketches using perspective constructions from plan and photo reference to understand how the object would be experienced in its space.

The Design

Sitting directly in the center of the park’s circular gathering space, the water feature is a five-metre disc of black granite flecked with copper, bisected by a narrow central copper channel. At its base, water drains into a narrow, copper-lined perimeter channel that runs its full circumference, protected from debris by a raised copper wall. Water wells up from the central channel and flows in a thin film across the surface of the disc and down into the perimeter channel. Reflections shift observers' perception of their mirrored surroundings.

This assembly is mounted to a concrete waffle slab with a foundation around masked by the surrounding stone dust. The waffle slab allows ample space for the pump used to circulate water in the system, and for insulation to protect plumbing and mechanical systems. It can be accessed through a removable access panel in the disc's surface that is closed with a waterproof gasket held shut by the weight of the stone.

The Design: Alternate Solutions & Maintenance Concerns

Upon the Jury’s request, alternate options for the height and material of the disc were provided due to safety concerns. 510mm above grade was viewed as a reasonable compromise to maintain an accessible experience. For an alternate material, panels of vein-cut French slate was proposed. Sourced in France, it would more closely match the tone of the existing stone dust pathway at the cost of some of the reflectivity of the darker granite.

the design: in the park

The design of the disc is calibrated to participate in the symbolic language of the park as well as functioning in its circulation flows and view corridors. its diameter is one quarter of the central circular space, reflecting the pattern of concentric rings of four and fitting neatly between the boundaries of the two converging paths that cross that circle. The division of the stone panels that make up the disc into a pattern of quadrants also refers to this pattern of four to represent the four Canadian battalions that took part in the battle. The division of the circle into two halves joined together in unity represents the friendship between Canada and France. The disc's height and material quality are chosen to take best advantage of visitor's long approach to create new kinds of views of the monument, the trees, and the landscape.

the design: in time

The reflective surface of the disc changes with the site and the seasons, day to day and year to year. As the Vimy Oaks grow to their full maturity, their canopies become part of the reflection and part of the feature. A person visiting the memorial may find that they never experience the disc the same way twice; instead, they see something new in the reflection each time they visit. At the same time that the disc draws visitors in to a still centre of repose, it draws their focus away from itself, placing the emphasis on the surrounding land and sky, and the meditations that this experience might provoke.

In the winter, when the water is turned off, the honed surface of the stone continues to reflect its surroundings. The quality of that reflection will change taking on more of the tone and colour of the stone, but the character of the object will remain the same. Just as the park's oaks will lose their rustling foliage and the chatter of birds will be stilled, the atmosphere of the disc will be quieted, and it will become the still centre of this winter landscape until spring when the trees come alive and the water returns.

peace through reflection

Framework and Process

The Design

The Design: Alternate Solutions & Maintenance Concerns

the design: in the park

the design: in time

Final Drawings