Commissioned by MoMA PS1 in Queens, P.F.1 (Public Farm 1) is about celebrating the marriage of sustainable infrastructure, innovative building materials, visionary urbanism and dancing—and declaring that architecture can bring together cities, farms, food and everyday life.
The project is a completely off-grid, biodegradable and recyclable half-acre farm made from cardboard tubes, which offered shade, seating and activities from phone-charging to vegetable cocktail-making to herb-infused cooling fans for MOMA/PS1’s summer parties below.
Powered by solar energy and irrigated by a rooftop rainwater collection system, the farm produced 50 varieties of organic fruit, vegetables and herbs over the course of the summer. Produce was used by the museum’s café, served at special events and harvested directly by foraging visitors.
The project is the subject of a book, Above the Pavement—the Farm! [LINK], published by Princeton Architectural Press in 2010.
Public Farm 1
Long Island City, Queens, New York
2008-2008
Principals: Amale Andraos + Dan Wood
Project Architect: Sam Dufaux
Project Team: Anna Kenoff and Haviland Argo, Jenny Andersen, Fred Awty, Sarah Carlisle, Diego Chavarro, Sam Dufaux, Katherine Eberly, Gaustas Eigirdas, Morten Dam Feddersen, Julia Galeota, Alina Gorokhova, Tamicka Marcy, Heidi Cathrine Østergaard, David Peterson, Melani Pigat, Bryony Roberts, Elliet Spring, Samuel Stewart-Halevy, Magda Szwajcowska, Jeffrey Yip
Structural: LERA
Textiles: Elasticco/Elodie Blanchard
Contractor: Art Domantay
Graphic Design: Project Projects
Photos by: Raymond Adams, Elizabeth Felicella