DESIGN – Embracing Edmonton - Our Winter City
What makes a winter city? To me, being a winter city means embracing winter, and the winter activities. Lighting plays an important role in getting people outside when it is dark so early in the evening. Lighting that is more than simply illumination – lighting that encourages playfulness and lingering.
One of my favorite plays with light is the Ice-Way at Victoria Park Oval, as it lasts all winter long, not just the holiday season, and it’s free for anyone to access. There’s this little section in the trees, where the coloured lights play on the ice, and make a magical effect. It makes me wonder where else we could incorporate this effect in the winter months? What walk-ways and pathways that are currently lit with white light where we could add an amazing play of light, encouraging people to come, play, be entranced? Could something like that be added to the Funicular, perhaps? Or a path along the river? Or for a plaza at one of the University campuses?