27 August 2008

ideal bench

had i been any more captivated by the falls and barges on the mississippi river, i may have missed these concrete benches. perfect in form; a solid rectangle. and function; ya sit on it and it won't blow away. with steel re-bar handles, which i think may be bike locks, perfect. but then again, this is minnesota so they could be personal space partitions. here in minnesota, it's all about the comfort zone.


what i love the most is that they are located in the mill ruins park, which, if you are not from minneapolis, is a park created to preserve architectural ruins. coming from Detroit, i totally appreciate this! amidst all the other random chunks of strewn concrete and steel, these benches look right at home, and i doubt they will be going anywhere soon.
addendum to original post: a co-worker thinks the re-bars are to keep skateboarders off. I think the mystery is solved.


2 comments:

Missy said...

I love 'em! It would be interesting to talk about the different methods to keep skateboarders off of stuff. A challenge of modern landscape design! Some are ugly, some are kitschy, some are blended in so well you think they are art.

Anonymous said...

I have never noticed these! Thanks for shedding light on more of the fabulous stuff along the river in Mpls, my fav place in the city!