John Marshall + Agence Ter Featured in The Dirt

In January 2019, The Dirt, an American Society of Landscape Architects blog, published a feature on the DIA Plaza and Midtown Cultural Connections design competition. The Agence Ter team — featuring Stamps Professor and MDes in Integrative Design program director, John Marshall, PhD, of the design duo rootoftwo — is one of three finalists in the competition. 

The international DIA Plaza and Midtown Cultural Connections design competition was launched last year by the DIA and Midtown Detroit to unite 12 cultural and educational institutions, creating a connected cultural district and a town square for the surrounding neighborhoods. Exhibitions of the finalists proposals are on view at the Detroit Institute of Arts through April 1, 2019. The winning team, selected by a jury that includes Taubman College Dean Jonathan Massey, will be honored with the project bid. Winners will be announced in mid-March, 2019.

In The Dirt, editor Jared Green recaps the finalists’ public presentations on Wednesday, January 23, 2019 at the Detroit Institute of Arts. Of the Agence Ter team, Green states: 

“All the teams seek to shrink down the width of boulevards; remove parking; add event spaces, cafes, and public art installations; and vastly expand public green space. The new designs could be the National Mall of Detroit or a lush, interactive university campus. The design teams seek to bring people in from around the Detroit and the suburbs and keep them there, engaged, enlightened, and entertained year-round.

The Agence Ter team offered meandering paths through forested and planted areas, with experimental event spaces for local artists and public art installations that speak to Detroit’s unique history.” 

Landscape Architects Take the Lead on New Cultural District in Detroit | The Dirt