Peeling Terrain

Situated between two prominent recreational fields in New York City's East River Park, the project embeds itself within the existing network of outdoor programs, accommodating a kayak boathouse, public piers, and arts and crafts studios. The design follows a landscape-driven approach, generating a secondary ground condition shaped by geometric parameters that inform its formal articulation. Emerging from the site's topography, the project introduces an elevated ground plane that supports open public activities while maintaining a fluid continuity with the park. Despite its monolithic appearance, the surface lifts, folds, and peels away at key moments, revealing embedded programmatic volumes. This peeling gesture carves circulation corridors through the interstitial spaces, structuring a dynamic sequence of public environments across multiple scales.