The West Village expansion in Claremont extends The Village into what was once an industrial zone and site of a thriving citrus industry. Having developed the planning and conceptual design for the commercial aspects of the expansion—a movie theater, hotel, and five commercial buildings with retail and restaurants—the City of Claremont selected us to design the Village Square, a public gathering place nestled within the center of this mixed-use project.
The concept for the square developed out of a response to the climate and landscape of the city. The elements of the square—seating, fountain, hardscape and plantings—were conceived as a pixilation of the natural landscapes of the nearby foothills, or a synthetic urban version of the local canyon topography.
The square features a series of figurative sculptures inhabiting the fountain, Matriculated Nature, designed by artist Tom Otterness. These playful interventions against a background of the interactive water feature and pedestrian activity references both the student life of this distinguished college town and the local amphibious wildlife.