Green Options

Maya Lin, best-known for her modern, memory gripping design of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., has shifted her subject matter to our planet, focusing in recent years “on a reconsideration of landscape in a time of ecological tension and change“. Currently, Maya Lin’s work is presented by PG&E at the de Young ~ via Heart of Green’s Cool Green Events:

“Systematic Landscapes is a major exhibition of new sculptures, drawings, and installations by renowned artist Maya Lin…this new body of work engages the issue of our fragile connection to the environment in timely and poetic ways.”

Simultaneously, Systematic Landscapes previews Maya Lin’s public art installation Where the Land Meets the Sea, a tubular wire sculpture commissioned by the San Francisco Arts Commission for Golden Gate Park’s California Academy of Sciences.

Walking around the gallery earlier today I was pleased to discover that in addition to the exhibition,

It took almost 10 years and $500 million to plan and complete, but the California Academy of Sciences’ new ultra-green museum in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park is ready to open. The public will be able to get its first glimpse of the building — dubbed a “masterpiece in sustainable architecture” — starting at 9:30 a.m.  Saturday, Sept. 27.

So what’s so green about the new facility? Almost everything, from basement to rooftop. The building is designed to earn the top level — platinum — of LEED certification for green construction. A “living roof” will boost insulation and prevent 2 million gallons of stormwater runoff each year. A canopy of solar cells will generate 213,000 kilowatts of electricity each year, enough to meet 10 percent of the museum’s needs. And radiant-floor heating and denim insulation will keep temperatures comfortable while minimizing energy consumption.