Affordable Houses
An apartment housing community in Poway California created around the idea of sustainability, totally solar powered and green at every corner. It also created a home for art.
The common areas use recycled glass in the concrete as a path that passes through a meyer lemon grove and culminates in a basket weave pavement motif that encircles a specimen oak tree.
Many features are catalysts for Solara's after school educational program. The Impression rubbing discs inserted in the walkways are an example of this. Artists Aida Mancillas and Nina Karavasiles designed these original art discs and created a curriculum for using them as both a learning tool and an aesthetic accent.
The Recycle-scope turns trash into something beautiful in a floor standing kaleidoscope in the community room.
An Hourglass made of recycled materials is educational, interactive, and has a poem written by Aida Mancillas.
The tot lot's water design is in recycled rubber and is flanked with sand blasted rocks, much like the Impression discs, but for younger kids. Its playhouse cafe is also made of recycled plastic.
The Cat Tail gate is on the very corner of the property and draws people to notice that they are on a water way and a cat tail pond is within attentive view.
The Recycle-scope
It has two viewing ports.
glass, old keys, odd bits of things are inside of a bicycle tire.
Sun Quilts welcome a visitor. Three steel pieces that rotate in the wind or by hand, have windows that house recycled items. What one sees as garbage, another might now be interested in.
The artists accentuated the architectural design of Carlos Rodriguez and the native plantings of Ivy Landscaping (www.ivyla.com), and they worked to integrate the concept of green living and nurturing curiosity.
Aida Mancillas is the originating and collaborating artist . She has done many public art pieces in San Diego, she is a commissioner and also a great writer. http://www.aidamancillas.com
This project commissioned by Community Housing Works www.chw.org
Project
manager; Mary Jane Jagodzinski
It was built by Sun Country Builders
Project
manager; Peter Bridge. www.suncountrybuilders.net
Impression Discs.
There are 9 discs scattered throughout
the housing complex. A "360
green curriculum" with specific ways to work the discs are available
to the after school program to the children of Solara. Each disc can be
approached artfully, scientifically, and with language. I like that it
is fully integrated. The discs are made of colored concrete with a sand blasted
design. When a person puts paper on top and uses a pencil or crayon
to rub the top, the image is transferred. This project can be done many
times. It can be done with all ages. It can become a book or a wall
piece.
Click here to read the poem on the Hourglass.
Design Team
Nina Karavasiles, Mike Vail, Harry Mestyanek, Aida Mancillas, Carlos Rodriguez
