The Dragon Gate in New York by ODA

Article source: ODA

Bound roughly by borders at Delancey and Chambers to the north and south, and East Broadway and Broadway to the east and west, Manhattan’s Chinatown has largely resisted the  real estate forces that’ve seized its pricier neighbors. Home to the largest ethnic Chinese population outside of Asia, the neighborhood remains both a bastion of unspoiled immigrant culture and, in many ways, a uniquely American project—a vital reminder of our historic inclusivity.

In The Dragon Gate at the Canal Street Triangle, ODA New York’s designed a fitting entrance to this storied district. Inspired by the namesake creature ubiquitous in Chinese culture, ODA’s pavilion also loosely invokes another fantastical being, the chimera; in mythology, a beast comprising parts from multiple unalike animals, but here manifest only in the multifaceted nature of their work.

Image Courtesy © ODA

• Architects: ODA
• Project: The Dragon Gate
• Location: New York, USA

Image Courtesy © ODA

The Dragon Gate is envisioned as a community nexus, a link between the area’s diverse neighborhoods; a destination, and boon to economic and pedestrian activity; a landmark, tribute to this proud ethnic stronghold; and, of course, public art, a sculptural focal point for the community. This is a gateway, bridge, totem, forum wrapped in one. In that amalgam, ODA delivers a true marriage of form and function—a defining feature of their work which, this proves, they’re able to materialize in virtually any context.

Rising 33 feet, ODA’s Dragon Gate is a highly three-dimensional structure comprising a steel grid evocative of natural bamboo. Indeed, its distinguishing quality is this gridded, trussed formation, with its deceptive airiness and delicacy—an ethereality that belies its scale and the tremendous complexity of its structure. Inside, a constellation of artfully placed vivid color constitutes the pixelated form of a dragon, as if suspended mid-flight. Meanwhile, ivy climbing the pavilions base provides a welcome infusion of green.

Image Courtesy © ODA

Envisioned for a triangular traffic island, ODA conceived the structure in a corresponding, roughly triangular shape, designed to maximize the use of the entire site. Because a traditional gateway—a two-way threshold—wouldn’t accommodate foot traffic from multiple directions, ODA’s carved out broad, open archways to create several access points, each feeding the pavilion’s central gathering area. This is functional permeability mirroring the aesthetic permeability achieved through ample negative space.

True to precedent, this ODA project is marked by an exceptional regard for context. Indeed, visual cues abound. In the pavilion’s more immediate surroundings: the archways of the Manhattan Bridge; the low-slung segmental arch and truss-like structure where Pearl Street passes under the Brooklyn Bridge; and the curved planters of Kimlau Square. Looking further, The Dragon Gates’s ascending curves echo the upturned eaves of traditional Chinese roofs; its archways recall the ancient fortified city walls found throughout China; and the project’s trussed framework is reminiscent of the bamboo scaffolding,  still often used in contemporary construction throughout China.

Image Courtesy © ODA

Image Courtesy © ODA

Tags: New York, USA

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