Hobbs Trail
DESIGN FOR
Poet Richard O. Moore said, “Simplicities are enormously complex.” This sentiment accurately describes the trail head and campsite structures located along the Arkansas’ Hobbs State Park Monument Trails system.
The main vehicles for the transformation are the Courtyard, Skylight and Vine. The Courtyard is a new insertion that demarcated the brewery, established an entrance for the school and created 320 feet of storefront. The Skylight transformed an existing mechanical opening into a real estate asset.
PROJECT info:
These architectural components were designed as a vehicle for immersion into the land, fortifying the sense of place and identity. The trailhead structures and campsite shells are strategically set as a series of sculptural elements in the landscape.
Simple in structure, the process between concept and fabrication was complex, involving extensive computational design work. After base geometries and specific portions were determined, each structure was broken into sections, conforming the curved design into straight beams that could be stacked and overlapped. The multiple lengths of each individual piece were optimized to the nearest inch, and bolt connections were mapped to make assembly in the shop, and eventually on site, as
efficient as possible.
“Hobbs State Park in not far from the broadest and some of the best Mountain bike trails in the country. But it offers something that isn’t available in the more urban trail systems, and that is a more natural, backcountry experience and shoreline trail. The system helps to round out the experience one could have in the region on trail. More specifically, the architectural features offer elevated, interpretive design that are functional and aspirational at the same time for all visitors who come to the park.”
— Suzanne Grobmyer Executive Director
Arkansas Parks & Recreation Foundation
Services: Architecture, Parametric Design & Custom Fabrication
Completion date: September 2020
Awards:
AIA Kansas City Design Excellence Merit Award (Divine Detail category)
Architect’s Newspaper ‘Best of Design’ Awards – Honorable Mention