neastudio

LATITUDE LOUNGERS

 

• Riverdale waterfront

Latitude Loungers set into the south side of a hilly site along the waterfront in Riverdale, Bronx. The heating loungers for this resting area along the Riverdale stretch of the Bronx Greenway offer heating, wind protection, views of the Manhattan skyline, plug-ins for MP3 players and lighting. Amorphous thin-film photovoltaic panels serve as back rests while powering the LED bulbs which point at the water's edge from under the reclaimed wooden boardwalk. The solar panels, framed in rusty steel and set into the hill at a 45 degree angle, mirror the Manhattan skyline to the south and the Palisades to the west.

 

The color and brightness of the lights are a function of the local temperature, signaling red when warmth is needed and blue when cooling is needed. Varying degrees of brightness indicate variances in temperature to the bikers and commuters on the neighboring rail tracks and bike path.

 

The lounge chairs, made of reclaimed wood and steel from the railroad site, provide heating and wind protection during the colder months when the waterfront is usually uninhabited. Rocks from the gabions at the site are enclosed in rectangular glass cases underneath the wooden surfaces of the loungers, which are heated by the rocks after midday. The rocks glow at night when the wooden surfaces are still warm after dark.