The project was created to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Constitution of Kuwait. Al Amiri Diwan, the government agency, decided to build a park in Kuwait City to host the monument “The Constitution,” which shows the path to democracy of the State of Kuwait.
In 2011 he was an invited competition organized on an area close to the sea, then in 2012 the SdARCH Studio was commissioned to develop the competition project to another area called Martyrs’ Park, where it will be installed the Museum currently under construction.
The garden is divided into two areas, one is’ “Old Age”, the second the “New Age”. The monument marks the transition from the old era that represents the time pre-constitution, the new era, or the period after the establishment of the State of Kuwait. “Ancient” is represented by a messy landscape, arid and furious, where reigns the feeling of instability and insecurity. “The New Age” is represented by a landscape organized, prosperous and orderly, dominated security and calm. The garden is designed according to Islamic tradition, as a reflection of paradise, a place where to stay and where time passes, one shaded space where water and vegetation abound, all interpreted with a new contemporary vision. A place where time is “in-between” between the history of the State of Kuwait and its future, and where the space is “in-between” between the area and the new landscape of Kuwait City.
The paths in “The Old Age” are not ordered, the landscape is rough, tough, trees and shrubs coexist with small rocky formations and fight with a desert land, in an arid climate or water. The monument is intended as a stepping stone to the future, it is made with two large portals 15×9 meters in height, brass and titanium, on the side of ‘”Old Age” while on the side of’ “New Age”, 183 blocks in relief highlight the articles of the Constitution. The two major portals are illuminated at the base to highlight the reflection of the material, accentuating the visibility of the monument, as a “beacon”: the Constitution as a guide between the mainland and the sea. The facade of brass on the side of “the old Age” without lyrics and without guidance, the difficulties of the past is resolved and overcome by the Constitution.
The Fountain, at the center of the park has large water jets invoking the image of the oasis, around a water sprinkler system, gives the place a greater thermal comfort allowing the rest in the shade of the park during the hottest periods. In the “New Age” the garden is made up of 183 olive trees and palm trees to represent the individual articles of the Constitution, while dozens of shrub species representing different ethnic groups and people of Kuwait.
The vegetation with species suited to the hot climate that reaches 50 ° C consists of shrubs, grasses, and flowering succulents. It ‘been a pattern created by a mixture of shrub species. Euphorbias, bougainvillea, plumeria, lantana, carisse alternate with grasses, ground cover and palmettos.
Around the fountain were placed three long benches made of resin; flooring in large slabs of travertine honed. Was made an extensive study on the characteristics of the soil in Kuwait: the soil is sandy with little organic matter and scarce nutrients to support plant growth and development; most of the soils are shallow due to the continued erosion of wind and strong sunshine that brings limestone layers below the surface. Furthermore, the absorption capacity of water in the soil is low due to the presence of sand, little organic material, and especially to the presence of salinity. To overcome these problems, it had to undertake a major soil preparation, through its leaching by placing a subsequent rinse and through the use of humic acids or organic substance.
Constitution Garden | Kuwait City, Kuwait
Landscape architects | SdARCH Trivelli & Associati: Architect Alessandro Trivelli, Architect Silvia Calatroni
Alhadeff Architects | Architect Giancarlo AlhadeffArchitect Antonella Rinaldi, Engineer Arda Beyleryan, Engineer Ettore Valentini
Lights | iGuzzini
Fountains | WaterCube s.r.l. (Marano Vicentino -VI)
Vegetation | Azienda fornitrice | Janayen Nursery Company – Kuwait
