TENSION // SUSPENSION
Revitalization of Old Atlanta Prison Farm
Atlanta, GA
Spring 2017
Instructor: Marisabel Marratt
This project began with an exploration of the textile industry, its influence on Atlanta and loom mechanics. This then gave way to a long period of site research, influenced by the weaving of historical and contemporary social and infrastructural systems. These studies guided navigation of the site, an abandoned prison farm comprised of 400 acres in south Atlanta that have been abandoned since 1992.
Site explorations were dominated by the lingering ideas of tension and suspension. The site has very distinct areas that have been habitually used since its abandonment- the prison building ruins, the lakes, the creek, informal recreation fields the trail system, which is dotted with the remnants of stones from Atlanta’s Carnegie Library. These areas become the supports for the site, keeping it suspended within the network of the community. These areas were re-imagined to be areas that serve the need for work through an artisan marketplace, the need for introspection in the ruins of the prison and the trails, the need for communion, through small introspective pavilions around the lakes and the need for expression, through an amphitheater near the Carnegie Stones.