Back in May, the Botanical Garden in Golden Gate Park kicked off an international competition to select a design for the Gondwana Circle. The mission: design a solution that effectively communicates the historical significance of Gondwana in relation to the evolution and current horticultural communities of the Southern Hemisphere.
Yeah, Gondwana was new to me too (thank goodness for Wikipedia). It’s the name for the 200 million year old supercontinent that eventually broke apart to include most of the landmasses in today’s southern hemisphere, including Antarctica, South America, Africa, Madagascar, Australia-New Guinea, and New Zealand, as well as Arabia and the Indian subcontinent, which have now moved entirely into the Northern Hemisphere.
Through educational and interpretive aspects of the winning design, organizers hope to provide visitors of all ages to the Botanical Garden with an understanding of the mechanics of plate tectonics and plant evolution as related to Gondwana.
The submissions are in, 89 in total. You can view them on the competition website, or see them in person Monday, September 28 through Thursday, October 1 in the Gallery of the County Fair Building at the Botanical Garden from 10am to 4pm (directions).
Some designs are subtle, others dominate the landscape of the circle like “Gondwana Henge” which takes it cues from Stonehenge. And still others utilize sculpture or iron work to get their point across.
After submissions are reviewed, a jury will select the finalists and the winning design will be announced in late October. Regardless of the winning design, this will be a great addition to the Garden.
Sarah B.
