Alluvium Brad Goldberg		Print This Page Email This Page

Location
Intersection – Pima Road & Pinnacle Peak, northeast and southeast corners Scottsdale, AZ 85255

Description
Completed: September, 2011
Materials: Boulders, concrete, welded, rusticated steel, landscape boulders, and indigenous plant materials

Brad Goldberg’s Alluvium is a model for the design of drainage culverts crossing the roadway at the washes along the length of Pinnacle Peak Road.  The public art elements of this major road improvement project in North Scottsdale include a pedestrian underpass, sculptural railing barriers, and landscape features that reference the iconic landmark of Pinnacle Peak.  The strong design of the desert masonry walls harkens back to Frank Lloyd Wright and his organic architecture with the use of desert materials.

Goldberg’s work at the intersection of Pinnacle Peak and Pima Roads is an artist-designed culvert with headwalls to visually link and recognize the major drainage at this busy intersection.  In addition, the design elements of headwall/bridge/railing are the prototypes offering a design vocabulary for the length of Pinnacle Peak Road.  As the multi-modal underpass and access to the intersection have become the dual focus, the materials, both natural and built, reflect the environs and draw from the indigenous materials of Pinnacle Peak.  The fence both reflects a natural rusticated design and projects an elegant sculptural barrier.  The strength of the desert masonry, the washes, and the particular zones of vegetation are reflected throughout Goldberg’s design of this intersection.

This prototype of an artist-designed culvert brings consideration of its use of innovative materials that emphasize permeability, recycling, and unobtrusive aesthetic design with natural materials.  The project goal has been to address the engineering and traffic needs, while maintaining a minimal impact on the natural environment.  Goldberg’s resulting work creates a beautiful, unique, and appropriate roadway and pedestrian link for this area.

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