Dorothea Dix Park

According to Asthma and Allergy Foundation (AAFA), Raleigh is the 9th worst city in the U.S. for people who have seasonal allergies.

The City, DT Raleigh Alliance, Dix Park Conservancy need to plant more female trees in order to curb this issue.

For context, male trees create pollen and female trees create fruit or seeds. During some point in history, U.S. cities avoided planting fruit trees and only planted male trees and it seems like that practice hasn’t changed.

Edit: I once threw up pollen (2010s).

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I’m hoping that the landscaping will be similar to what’s outside the NCMA:



(Not my pictures)

I couldn’t find pictures of the parking lot but the green stormwater infrastructure is top notch!

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So, what you are saying is that the bro trees in Raleigh are just going full on eggplant on us every year?

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I walked by these a little while ago. They are much larger than they appear in the photo! And there are more staged for assembly.

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https://www.instagram.com/p/C4l6PBDLRJ5/?img_index=3

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I mean it’s not a bar with two dog parks and colorfully illuminated bridges like Cary’s park has, but at least there’s some rusty cylinders glued together. :man_shrugging:t2:

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I know rite smh that art looks like tetanus tetris

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This is what the final product is supposed to look like:

I like it and think it’s a good addition to the park. We need a lot more art installations and landscaping work throughout the park in order for it to be a major attraction for art and nature lovers. :art::deciduous_tree:

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I like to be positive, and totally agree with more public art is good, but … wow. That is underwhelming. Looks like staging for a construction project. Worse, this is the kinda of piece that makes people wonder why we waste public money on ‘art’. I will give myself a grumpy cat.

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It’s not public money.

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Not EVERYTHING has to be about the rugrats or the pups.

People are going to be Instagramming the shit out of this piece!

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I agree, but it all depends on the execution and the entire viewing experience and interaction. In particular, how the pathways and views coordinate.

A lot of the sculpture on the NCMA grounds is less than impressive when viewed in isolation, for example. But it’s situated with access and sightlines that make it more impactful. Think about how the rings line up from the path for a forced perspective hero shot of the grounds leading down to the forest.

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I think it’s going to be more impressive in person. At least, I thought it was cool when I was right next to it. Also, I don’t think the posted view puts it in context very well.

I will say that I hope they do more finishing on the cold connections. The bolts stick out on the inside and it looks unfinished. But the installation is, in fact, unfinished at this point, so I’m withholding judgment!

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Are the big holes big enough to walk through? Otherwise this will just act as a big dividing wall, which to me is NOT the point of a big open space in a public park…

EDIT: saw the instagram post and there’s a guy standing next to one - they’ll def be big enough to walk through haha

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You guys sound like the Parisians when the Eiffel Tower was built. Large portion of residents hated it, and wanted it torn down because it was ugly.

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I was just joking around, but I don’t think this is quite the Eiffel Tower. Sometimes people don’t like things because they’re just not that great. FWIW, this art installation is fine. I like the spread out, rustic sort of art scattered around the NCMA park and the fun of exploring it. I’m envisioning this to be somewhat similar.

I understand these are sort of apples to oranges comparisons between a medium, highly structured park in a small downtown vs a large, longterm, more freeform park just outside a larger downtown. I was just pushing back a little, because a number of people on here seem oddly critical of DT Cary and its new park, in a way that smacks of overcompensating. I’m happy for both things to exist, and I’m sure Dix will be fun to watch slowly progress into a cohesive project for the rest of my lifetime.

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It seems nice enough without blowing anyone away. DT Cary park, while an amazing amenity, is a bit overstuffed so I don’t mind Dix going with a more low-key arts program.

And I think Cor-Ten steel just looks good.

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Exactly, this is the first or second of many art installations that will be in the park. Also, the installation isn’t even done yet and there may be plans to beautify the surrounding landscape at a later time.

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Personally, I don’t hate or love it, but I think slow and steady additions to the park are a W. I’d love to see consistent availability of sidewalks/paths as a priority improvement over this though, along with removing some of the creepy boarded up buildings that make visitors think I’m insane when I say Dix will be the crown jewel attraction of the city.

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