Writers Block follies combine literature with design.
By: Jeff Milgram
"I work to feed my family," architect and builder John James Rivera said Thursday evening at a party celebrating the opening of Writers Block on a former empty lot on Paul Robeson Place. "This is all about feeding your brain."
Around him guests walked near corn stalks and sunflowers, sipping wine, munching on hors d’oeuvres and getting their first official look at Writers Block, a garden of whimsically designed structures, known as "follies," inspired by Princeton authors.
"I feel blessed," said Peter Soderman, owner of Bohemian Grove, a "garden art" company, who helped organize Writers Block. "I feel grateful, I feel humble. I feel proud of my architects."
Writers Block is located near the Herban Garden, a kitchen garden created by Mr. Soderman for restaurateurs Carlo and Raoul Momo behind their Witherspoon Bread Co. store.
"It’s got what would be a Princeton theme," Alan Goodheart, another organizer, said of Writers Block. "It took all the talent of all the people to make it happen."
"It’s different," said Kevin Wilkes, a partner in Princeton Design Guild who helped Mr. Soderman on Writers Block. "No one’s seen this before."
The volunteer architects and builders were teamed with literary luminaries Joyce Carol Oates, James McPherson, Peter Singer, Peter Benchley, Paul Krugman, Paul Muldoon, Emily Mann, Chang-rae Lee, Cornel West, Paul Sigmund, Fran Lebowitz and Pablo Neruda.
The goal was to interpret the writers’ work or life in a garden setting.
The structures were set up in an empty plot temporarily donated by Palmer Square Management. The project will be on view until Oct. 31 and then the structures will be auctioned off, construction costs recouped and the rest donated to charity.
Mr. Wilkes designed a folly based on the work of Professor McPherson, a Princeton University expert on the Civil War. The design features a four-columned structure "with a temporary Civil War camp feeling," Mr. Wilkes said.
Speakers on the south side of the structure play "Dixie." Music from rap group Public Enemy blares from speakers on the north side.
Mr. Rivera’s structure, "Hands Together," was inspired by the work of Professor Sigmund, a Latin American specialist. The pavilion features soaring shapes, a live bamboo tree and benches for visitors to sit on while contemplating the garden.
Professor West, who writes about race, philosophy and democracy, inspired Sharon McHugh and John Nastasi to design a pavilion using a space age honeycomb aluminum. The trumpet-shaped design is meant to be a threshold into the John-Witherspoon area, Princeton’s historically black neighborhood, Ms. McHugh said.
Mr. Muldoon, the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet, met with Juliet Richardson and Terrance Smith, partners in Richardson Smith Architects on Witherspoon Street.
"I think of poetry as a combination of chemistry and physics," Mr. Muldoon told the architects. The result is "Experimental Pavilion One," a rotating piece of architecture that changes the perception of the rider, Ms. Richardson said. "We’re going to change the façade every couple of days," she said.
"We do a lot of work for Habitat for Humanity and it’s important to give something to the town," Ms. Richardson said.
Mr. Muldoon told author Joyce Carol Oates about Writers Block and she signed on, too.
Ms. Oates gave architect Gil Rampy the freedom to create whatever he wanted.
"Architects are artistic," said Ms. Oates. "They work with beauty."