Ecliptic/Rosa Parks Circle

Grand Rapids, Michigan

Maya Lin Studio, architect
Quennell Rothschild & Partners, landscape architect

sparks the imagination and touches on the sublime – Brenda Brown, Landscape Architecture

Lumen Citation 2003, Illuminating Engineering Society

Sophisticated use of fiber optic technology helped to transform a once-dangerous park into a lively destination in downtown Grand Rapids , Michigan . The heart of the 3½ acre site is a skating rink with 166 fiber optic lights glowing through the ice, mirroring the starlit winter sky. Attracting 23,000 skaters during its first year, the renovated park is one piece in a comprehensive urban renewal plan. In warmer months, the rink becomes an amphitheatre hosting large public events. Additional lighting for needed visibility on the rink/amphitheatre and surrounding seating and steps is carefully controlled to prevent obscuring the fiber optic stars.

“Ecliptic Park, Public Art as Urban Revitalization” Professional Lighting Design, Jan/Feb 2003. (Download PDF)