J. Irwin and Xenia S. Miller Prize

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Studio Zewde

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Echoes of the Hill

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Presented by Deer Crossing Fund

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J. Irwin and Xenia S. Miller Prize ● Studio Zewde ● Echoes of the Hill ● Presented by Deer Crossing Fund ●

For the 30th anniversary of Mill Race Park, Studio Zewde explores the deep history of the site—from indigenous landscape technologies to localized histories like the River Rats and the Mill Race Monster. Research was conducted on the community’s favorite stories and spots in this place to identify a strong relationship to landmarks such as the hill, the pond, the trails, and the architectural elements.

This installation engages the interface between one of these beloved landmarks—the hill—and one of these spaces of opportunity—the Festival Field. In the dedication ceremony 30 years ago, the designer of this park, Michael Van Valkenburgh, made explicit reference to the hill’s form echoing the ancient mound-building traditions from the Missippean culture. This installation echoes this hill with red frames and makes the mound’s circle complete, suggesting a new public space for gathering. As a hollow form, the interior of the installation can be activated by special events or everyday usage, while offering a festive backdrop to the open lawn. The installation presents a literal and metaphorical “frame” on the pasts, presents, and futures of this land.

Accessibility

The exhibit is located in a grassy field. The grass may be uneven and damp due to weather but is relatively flat. The structure can be viewed easily from a nearby sidewalk.

Red metal framework structure on a grassy hill with trees in the background.

What memories are in this landscape?

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Echoes of the Hill Installation Credits

J. Irwin and Xenia S. Miller Prize

Presented by

Deer Crossing Fund

Team

Naomi Fassil
Philip Syvertsen
Sara Zewde

Materials

Bamboo, Paint

Fabrication Supporters

Vinc Math
Silman
Brose Partington Studio
Vince Rubio, City of Columbus Parks of Public Works

Additional Credits

Volunteers from the community, Cummins, and Toyota
Indiana University Students

Site: Mill Race Park, 1993

For Exhibit Columbus, Studio Zewde will focus on the 83 acre Mill Race Park, which is located in downtown Columbus at the location where the Flat Rock and Driftwood Rivers join together to become the east fork of the White River and eventually connect to the Mississippi River. The area became a park in the 1960s and its current design was completed by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates in 1993.

A man with a bald head, beard, and mustache smiling with arms crossed, wearing a black polo shirt with a department of parks logo, standing outdoors with green trees and a grassy area in the background.
An empty outdoor stage with a red roof structure in a park, surrounded by green grass and trees, with a cityscape in the background under a partly cloudy sky.

In partnership with Community Curator, Mark Jones, Director of City of Columbus Parks and Recreation Department (left portrait).

Curatorial Question

What memories are in this landscape?

A woman smiling, wearing a black Nike tank top and a navy blue New Balance cap, holding a red firework tube, standing outdoors near metal pipes with red netting in the background.

“The idea for Studio Zewde’s installation emerged from their analysis of community feedback.”

Sara Zewde of Studio Zewde was raised on the Gulf Coast in Slidell, Louisiana, and Houston, Texas, with her sister Naomi who is now an economist at the University of California Los Angeles. Sara watched Hurricane Katrina from her college dorm room in Boston, and the aftermath of that event eventually prompted her on her journey toward landscape architecture.

As a teenager, she visited the Menil Collection in Houston frequently. In fact, it was the first place she drove by herself when she got her driver’s license. The fact that it was free entry meant that she could visit frequently throughout her young adulthood, which shaped her relationship with its landscape, architecture, and museum exhibitions.

Sara said her practice has diverse projects in scale, geography, client type, and communities–from public art installations to residential landscapes to museums, public parks, and large-scale regional planning, from Columbus, Indiana, Rio de Janeiro, to the Swiss Alps. They are all powered by a core design methodology they are building. Still, this range of projects means that methodology is always challenged and evolving to keep their design muscles strong.

Studio Zewde came into the project knowing that Mill Race Park’s 30th anniversary was a chance to speak to the deep history of the land and its last 30 years and to prompt a conversation about its next 30 years and beyond. The community’s responses during engagement pointed to a strong existing connection to the hill but less so to the field to which it sits adjacent. Her group began conceiving the installation as a dialogue between these two spaces and a chance to extend the activation the hill evokes toward the field.

They asked the Columbus community for their favorite stories at Mill Race Park. From the responses, they learned about secret gin and tonics at the playground, the Mill Race Monster, and the frequency of squirrel attacks.  

Michael Van Valkenburgh, a professor for whom Sara served as a teaching assistant, designed Mill Race Park, so she has more than one reason to be invested in this project. The installation prompted Sara to reconnect with him and listen to his reflections on his experience designing the park and what the commission meant for his career. Coincidentally, she is about the same age he was when he designed the park, so the conversations have also prompted the sharing of wisdom and retrospection. 

Most of the portfolio in the office is either public or public-facing, so the curatorial theme of Public by Design was already so resonant with their approach to work. It feels like an affirmation that they will carry with them into the future.

This excerpt is from the 2023 Field Guide. Download it here.

Collection of printed activity guides and maps for the 2023 Columbus exhibit, including a colorful map with numbered points, text instructions, and information about the exhibit.

Activity Guide for kids and families to explore the Exhibition.

Download the activity for the installation Echoes of the Hill. Print at home, or stop by any Infohub to pick up a free guide.

Creating Echoes of the Hill

Three adults standing outdoors in a grassy field, one woman and two men, engaged in a discussion, with the woman gesturing and holding papers. The woman is pointing, the man on the right has a stopwatch, and the man on the left is holding a wooden stick. The background includes trees and parked cars.
A park with a grassy field, trees, a concrete wall, and multiple bamboo poles laid on the ground. In the background, a traditional Japanese-style stage with a red roof is situated on a small hill.
A young woman smiling and wearing red gloves, a black t-shirt with words, and standing outdoors near red and bamboo poles on a grassy area.
Two people working outdoors on a construction project, one kneeling and the other squatting, measuring a bamboo pole with a ruler, with a grassy field, a building, and a cloudy sky in the background.
Three people standing outdoors under a tree, looking at a tablet and a bottle, with a woman holding a tape measure, a man using the tablet, and an older man looking at the tablet, in a park-like setting with grass and a stone wall.
A man wearing a black shirt, beige shorts, and a cap is carrying a long yellow pole across a grassy area near parked cars and trees.
Group of people outdoors working on constructing or painting a bamboo structure on a blue tarp, with tools and paint supplies nearby, under trees with a park or open field in the background.
Red bamboo poles arranged in parallel, close-up view.
A woman outdoors, holding a bundle of ropes and a wooden stick, smiling in a grassy field with trees in the background.
People assembling a large, portable volleyball or badminton court on a grassy area, with a blue tarp base, red and yellow poles, and some equipment nearby.
Four people having a discussion outdoors in a park, with trees and grass in the background, around a wooden workbench with some tools.
A person standing on a ladder working on a large outdoor red and bamboo structure, possibly for an event or installation, in a grassy park with trees in the background.
A person standing alone on an outdoor stadium track with green trees in the background and a large red metal structure with lights overhead.
Close-up view of bamboo poles arranged diagonally, showing green and brown bark textures.
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Woman in tank top and sunglasses laughing as she carries bamboo poles during outdoor event, with a man partially visible nearby and greenery in the background.

2023 Design Presentations

A woman with curly hair, wearing a red blazer, speaking into a microphone behind a white podium with the words 'public by design' on it, in front of a colorful geometric background.
Aerial view of a park with walking paths, trees, a small lake, and a modern open-air stage with a unique red and black art installation beside it.

Echoes of the Hill installation design concept by 2022–23 J. Irwin and Xenia S. Miller Prize Recipient Studio Zewde from Harlem, New York.

“The theme, Public by Design, prompts a reflection on the critical role of design in the public realm—inspiring civic engagement, belonging, and the kinds of social interaction that bolster a democratic society.” — Sara Zewde, Founding Principal

2022 Symposium

Four people standing outdoors on a sunny day near a sign, with trees and a park in the background. One woman in black dress with chunky boots is speaking, while the others listen.
Group of people standing on an outdoor balcony beneath an empty, rust-colored metal structure with lights, surrounded by trees showing fall foliage, under a partly cloudy sky.

The Studio Zewde team, Naomi Fassil, Philip Syvertsen, and Sara Zewde with Community Curator and Columbus Parks and Recreation Department Director Mark Jones at Mill Race Park for a community engagement session during the 2022 Symposium.

J. Irwin and Xenia S. Miller Prize Recipient

Studio Zewde

Harlem, New York

Studio Zewde is a landscape architecture, urban design, and public art practice based in Harlem, New York City. The studio’s work is well-known for its design methodology that syncs site interpretation and narrative with a dedication to the craft of construction. The firm’s employees have multi-disciplinary backgrounds in landscape architecture, architecture, city planning, urban design, sociology, statistics, community organizing, and public art. Studio Zewde is devoted to creating enduring places where people belong.

Existing work by Studio Zewde

A community park with people, children playing, and modern apartment buildings, with a sign reading 'Sparrow Square Community Center' in the background.

Kingsboro Development Kingsboro Psychiatric Center Studio Zewde is working in collaboration with Adjaye Associates in the redesign of the over 7 acre site in Brooklyn, New York to include a signature new landscape space, over 900 units of affordable housing, a grocery store, and a community center. Credit: Adjaye Associates

Two children sitting on a large rock, wearing face masks, with trees and a cloudy sky in the background.

First Creek Park in Tacoma, Washington opened in 2021.
Credit: Metro Parks Tacoma. Credit: Sara Zewde