Everything about Diana Princess Of Wales Memorial Fountain totally explained
The
Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain is a memorial to
Diana, Princess of Wales. It was designed to express Diana's spirit and love of children. It is located in the southwest corner of
Hyde Park in
London, just south of the
Serpentine Lake and east of the
Serpentine Gallery. Its cornerstone was laid in September 2003 and it was officially opened on
July 6,
2004 by
Queen Elizabeth II. Also present were Diana's younger brother
Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer, her ex-husband
Prince Charles, and her sons
William and
Harry.
Design
The fountain was designed by
Kathryn Gustafson, an American landscape artist, and cost £3.6 million. Ms. Gustafson said she'd wanted the fountain, which was built to the south of the Serpentine, to be accessible and to reflect Diana's "inclusive" personality. Ms. Gustafson told the BBC "Above all I hope that it provides a fitting memorial for the princess and does credit to the amazing person that she was."
Construction
The 545 individual pieces of
Cornish granite were cut using sophisticated computer-guided cutting machines by
S. McConnell & Sons in
Kilkeel,
Northern Ireland.
Although described as an oval stone
fountain, it has the form of a large, oval stream bed about 50 by 80 m (165 by 260 feet) that surrounds, and is surrounded by, a lush grassy field. The granite streambed is from 3 to 6 m (10 to 20 feet) wide and quite shallow and is laid out on a gently sloping portion of the park, so that water pumped to the top of the oval flows down either side. One side of the stream bed descends fairly smoothly to the downhill end of the oval with gentle ripples. The other side consists of a variety of steps, rills,
curves, and other shapes so that the water plays in interesting ways as it flows to the tranquil pool at the bottom. The two sides were intended to show the two sides of Diana's life, both happy times and turmoil.
Controversy
In addition, because Diana was a contemporary and accessible princess, the fountain's goal was to allow people access to the structure and to the water for quiet wading and contemplation. However, shortly after its opening and after three hospitalisations caused by people slipping in the water, the fountain was closed. It reopened in August 2004, surrounded by a new fence, and people are now prevented from walking or running in the water by six wardens.
However, even though the fountain was only open for a part of the 2004 season, and the weather wasn't particularly wet, the grass adjacent to part of the fountain was almost obliterated, and it appeared that it would turn to a quagmire if heavy rain ever fell during the main visiting season. Therefore in December 2004, another alteration project was started. This involved work on the drainage, together with laying new hard surfaces on some of the most frequently walked areas of the site and the planting of a special hard wearing
rye grass mix in others.
Further Information
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