Gateway Park Sandbox in Rosslyn Virginia

The Rosslyn BID wanted to revitalize a walk-though concrete park with a non-functioning water fountain and convert it into a sandbox for children to play in.

Gateway Park lay between two highways in downtown Rosslyn and was slated to be torn down in the near future so the idea was to do something fun but not too costly.

The BID contacted Arlington’s premiere designer babe, Evelyn Powers of Design Powers who just happens to be a long-time friend and colleague of mine.

Evelyn mocked up a vibrant flowery pattern and immediately summoned me to execute and improve upon her concept. Evelyn had her niece, the fabulous Emily Krause assist me.

First, the concrete needed to be primed. I used Sherryl and Golden’s Artist colors for the paint. We painted flowers, butterflies, frogs. leaves and sunshine. The end result was a playful, colorful, and graphic interpretation of nature.

Adirondack chairs were placed around the sandbox for the adults and a tented structure to cool the playing children.