The power of an imaginative illustration
DPZ CoDesign conducted a charrette in downtown Providence, Rhode Island, in 1992, sponsored by the City and the Coalition for Community Development. The talented artist Charles Barrett, who passed away in 1996, worked for DPZ. As described in the recently published The Art of the New Urbanism (authors James Dougherty and Charles Bohl), Barrett produced surprisingly fast pen-and-ink illustrations of what could be in the compressed charrette time frame.
Shown above, from the book, is Barrett's illustration of the corner of Westminster and Matthewson streets (watercolor by Manuel Fernandez-Noval). Low-quality buildings occupied the corner, and the Providence Downcity Plan—led by Andres Duany—proposed a strategy of parks and liner buildings throughout downtown to improve the public realm.
Thirty years later, the corner looks remarkably like the rendering. Below are a 1992 photo (left) and a recent photo (right) of the same corner.
Providence Preservation Society’s Guide to Providence Architecture describes the creation of Freeman Park, now one of the best little public spaces downtown.
“The bedraggled and vacant building gave way to a pocket park, the suggestion of 1990s silver-tongued golden boy Andres Duany, who imagined vest-pocket parks with “liner” buildings to generate activity on Providence’s major Downtown streets.”
The after photo was taken in the winter. The park looks even better with leaves on the trees.
The image that appeared in Barrett’s head one day as he quickly sketched the corner has become a reality. Good artists, with a vision worth drawing, can be powerful urban planners.
