Salvage Swings is a cross-laminated timber pavilion built in Lighthouse Park on Roosevelt Island. The project was the winner of the 2019 City of Dreams international design competition and served as the center piece of the FigmentNYC arts festival.
The pavilion consists of 12 repetitive modules that frame individual swings and views of the park and surrounding city. The swings are organized collectively in a triangular form to create a new communal space within the park. The open framework of the pavilion can host a variety of activities including swinging, picnicking, concerts, and hide-and-seek games. The swing seats come from the window cut-outs between modules and activate a large-scale peg game for kids. Integrated LED lighting in the swing windows transforms the pavilion at night into a beacon from the banks of the East River in Manhattan and Queens.
The pavilion is constructed from cross-laminated timber that was salvaged from the shipping palettes of a University residence hall construction project. The 7’ by 30’ three-ply spruce palettes were processed and machined at the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design with the support from the fabrication staff and students.
The project proposes how a temporary pavilion design can utilize construction waste and also avoid ending up in the landfill after its initial period of use. The swings are designed to be easily assembled and disassembled with a small group of volunteers. Prefabricated finger joint connections and manageable piece sizes allows for the project to be flat-packed, shipped, and site assembled in a matter of days. The modular design allows the pavilion to live beyond the summer activities in new places and configurations.
Salvage Swings was installed on Roosevelt Island for the summer of 2019, and since has been disassembled, flat packed and installed on the University of Arkansas campus and most recently installed at the Scott Family Amazeum in Bentonville, Arkansas, successfully fulfilling the project’s concept for re-use.
Photographs by James Leng.
Credits:
- Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design - Fabricator
- Emerging New York Architects - Organizer
- Structural Engineers Association of New York - Organizer
- FigmentNYC - Client
- TM Light - Lighting Design
- Guy Nordenson and Associates - Structural Engineer
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