The TV channel Arte is currently showing the documentary series “Amazing Gardens”, which portrays spectacular green spaces from all over the world. The series presents projects from Germany, Mexico, the USA and China, among others. This week’s focus: the High Line Park in New York.
At a dizzying height of nine meters, the High Line Park floats above the streets of New York.
The High Line Park offers an urban promenade without denying its industrial roots.
At a height of nine meters, it offers a spectacular view of New York's skyscrapers.
Green plants, former slaughterhouses and modern glass fronts form a fascinating unity in High Line Park.
The High Line blends seamlessly into its high-rise surroundings.
A green route in the middle of Manhattan: New York’s High Line Park has been one of the Big Apple’s new landmarks for several years. The green route, which runs at a height of nine meters, is both natural and urban at the same time. It stretches for more than two kilometers from Gansevoort Street to 34th Street.
A railroad line used to run along here, connecting the factories in West Manhattan. The railroad tracks were built between 1929 and 1934 and were important for transporting livestock. At the beginning of the 19th century, the Meatpacking District experienced its heyday: slaughterhouses were located in the many halls that are now used by trendy bars, hotels and restaurants. Until 1980, the elevated railroad was also used to transport milk and grain for the bakeries. After the line was closed, the tracks and buildings gradually fell into disrepair.
It is thanks to the commitment of the citizens’ initiative “Friends of the High Line” that the last witnesses of the industrial age were spared from demolition. In the early 2000s, the area was transformed into a public park under the leadership of the landscape architects Fields Operations, the architecture firm Diller Scofidio + Renfro and the gardener Piet Oudolf, which quickly became a popular and much-visited meeting place for New Yorkers as a contemporary reinterpretation of the city stroll.
The documentary is available in the Arte media library until October 20. Next Sunday at 16:25 it will be broadcast on the Arte television program.
All images: Cineteve.