Merit Award
Fairmount Park Master Signage and Interpretive Guidelines
Philadelphia
Fairmount Park Commission, Center City District
Cloud Gehshan Associates
Jerome Cloud (principal in charge), Peter Kelly, Julie Colton, Peter Reed, Barbara Schwarzenbach, Dorothy Funderwhite, Andy Parsons, Greg Prichard, John Herrick
Dommertphillips (interpretive planning)
Cloud Gehshan Associates
With an astonishing 9,200 acres, 63 neighborhood parks, and a crowded events calendar, the Fairmount Park system is a wonderful resource for Philadelphians and visitors. Cloud Gehshan Associates developed a sign system that extends throughout the park, from the quietest trails through the heart of the city and on to the Delaware waterfront.
Variations in the sign forms allow the system to be effective and appropriate in a wide range of environments. The system includes 42 sign types, as well as variations that allow for different budgets. Type fonts and colors are drawn from a common palette, interpretive signs work equally well for natural treasures and man-made features, and materials, finishes, and lettering technologies are consistent. Whether identifying athletic fields, historic buildings, public art, or nature trails, the comprehensive sign program gives park officials the tools they need to serve diverse needs.
Cloud Gehshan also developed recommendations for a unified and distinctive wayfinding and interpretive sign system for the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia’s museum district that includes such destinations as the Franklin Institute, the Academy of Natural Sciences, and the Rodin Museum. The system builds on the park system signage, animates the pedestrian experience, and enhances appreciation of the Parkway’s assets.
Installation of the park signs has begun in the northeast quadrant of the city. The remaining quadrants will be phased in over the next three to four years. When complete, the system will include approximately 600 signs.
Fairmount Park system
“I developed documentation envy. As a group, the SEGD membership should strive to attain this level of professionalism. The document demonstrates a complete understanding of the entire EGD process from start to finish.”