Thursday, September 20, 2012

The High Line

In the late 1990's I saw a gallery exhibit of photographs of a mile-long elevated railway in Manhattan that had pretty much been abandoned and was overgrown with weeds and brush. The photographs were beautiful. There was talk of tearing the railway down, but fortunately citizens got together to save it, and with money the City of New York contributed, it was turned into a park. The first section opened in 2009, and the second section in 2011. I have always wanted to visit it, and am embarrassed to say that it took until two days ago to get there. I was not disappointed - it is a stunning park with wonderful views. But the best part is the plantings they have chosen - naturalized plantings that are inspired by the self-seeded landscape that grew on the disused tracks. I also have to say that I had such a hard time finding one "best" picture.

2 comments:

Ron taylor said...

Ken,
I am happy to say that I have been there twice. The second time was to leave a part of Edie, strategically placed, so that she could forever watch over her beloved city.

Ken Spencer said...

Hi Ron: Wow, what a lovely story - I am touched. Thank you so much for mentioning this.