Design
Making The High Line
Two designers behind the iconic railway-turned-park discuss how it ushered in a new era of landscape design.
The High Line, Manhattan’s elevated railway-turned-park, now attracts six million visitors a year. As it approaches its seventh year as one of the world’s most identifiable public spaces, it’s come a long way for a piece of infrastructure marked for demolition not long ago.
Designed by James Corner Field Operations and Diller Scofidio+Renfro, the High Line’s success has ushered in a new wave of park design that either reuse neglected trails and bridges or create new ones for the same effect. Around the world, at least 60 different projects that are either being planned, are under construction, or have been completed cite the High Line as an influence, according to the two firms.