not whole fence by ball-nogues lines baseball field in texas

the porous partition ‘not whole fence’, designed and realized by LA-based ball-nogues studio, functionally serves to provide a safety barrier between a baseball field and a children’s playground while also seeking to engage the attention and imagination of those passing by. through a finely-tuned sculpting of aluminum extrusions, the sturdy veil permits varied and partial views into the ballpark, while presenting an overall composition of wood grain and knot holes in reference to a weathered board of wood. the project is located at the northeast corner of southwest university park in el paso, texas, USA.

aluminum extrusions were milled to permit varied and partial views into the ballpark
image © marty snortum / all images courtesy of ball-nogues studio

‘not whole fence’ alludes to a simpler mode for watching baseball, when the game was occasionally viewed through a wooden fence. ball-nogues studio describes the nostalgic reference as follows: ‘imagine a child, peeking through the knotholes with the impressionable canvas of youth, evoked by a sense of wonder and hope or devoted fans who cannot afford tickets, sneaking glances through small openings with playfully mischievous eyes, excited by the possibility of joyous victory or getting caught.’

the partition wraps the a portion of el paso’s southwest university park
image © marty snortum

each aluminum extrusion was milled on either side to create the overall waving effect along the fence surface, with cut-aways on the exterior creating the knot holes and treatment on the interior producing the wood grain pattern.

the patterning references wood grain patterns and knot holes as seen on a weathered wood board
image © marty snortum

image © marty snortum

the partition teases passers-by to peer through the limited openings of the fence
image © pat dalbin

image © pat dalbin

the project references a simpler mode of watching baseball, where one peers through a wood picket fence

elevation

translation of the wood grain pattern to the fence’s layout

project info:

designers and principals in charge: benjamin ball and gaston nogues
project manager: mora nabi
ball-nogues project team: andrew fastman, michael anthony fontana, christine forster-jones, emma helgerson, cory hill, james jones, allison porterfield, rafael sampaio rocha, forster rudolph
design and fabrication and installation supervision: ball-nogues studio
engineering consultant: buro happold los angeles, jean-pierre chakar, PE
specialty fabrication and consulting: neal feay co
installation consultant: industrial stainless international, tim downing
photography: marty snortum, pat dalbin

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