Magnetic Fields
Obstacles to making Toronto's Hydro corridors into vital, connected public spaces include lack of suitable pedestrian crossings, inadequate lighting for night time use, a need for awareness of the space as a citywide asset, and potential uncertainty regarding the safety of proximity to the high voltage power lines, which constitute the biggest visible impact and functional reason for the space.
According to the data from the Toronto Environmental Protection Office, measurements taken along all sections of the hydro corridor are well below of the Earth's natural magnetic field and are also lower than other common sources of exposure, such as cell phones and laptop computers.
The goal is therefore to represent this information with a painted mural and lighting program, mapping the concentric circles of the radiating field and expressing them in terms of fractions of the Earth's natural field as well as scientific units. Informational plaques and color keys at the entrance to each section further explain this information, empowering visitors to better understand the corridor.
The logic of the intervention could easily be replicated along the rail corridor, making a unique lighted mural in each location as each location will furnish it's own unique data, all requiring only colored fluorescent lighting and paint.
(Competitor's text)
