my mini-golf hole idea

1. Zen “Rock the
Garden” hole
Wesley Thayne Petersen
Final Project – Intro SD,
MCAD
12/10/12

2. Introduction
A friend asked me to design a
mini-golf course for the Walker
Art Museum next summer to be
displayed in the sculpture
garden. After the first meeting
that introduced the mini-golf
hole project, I felt it would be a
good opportunity to bring
awareness, in a fun way, to
sustainability. Over the course
of the summer the Walker art
museum is expecting 50,000
visitors to mini-golf alone. This
allows for a great opportunity
to bring awareness to the
general public on how designs
can be sustainable as well as
beautiful, inexpensive and well
made.

3. The motif is a miniature golf
hole with a Japanese style
arched bridge leading to a Zen
rock garden. The bridge is to
help with access to the tee
and rock garden, with a maple
tree to add to the ambiance.
Rocks in the corners of the
fairway are used to bounce the
ball through the course, as well
as a chute that leads from the
upper level to the lower under
the rock garden above

4. This design is a mini-golf course
hole and interactive artscape
built with reclaimed wood,
found materials and 100%
recycled products. The
platform itself is composed of
pallets fastened together with
recycled steel screws and
capped on top with recycled
fiber-rock board. The fairway is
carpeted with sustainably
processed and recycled
carpet remnants. The rocks,
gravel, and sand are taken
from nearby rivers and
beaches, which will be
returned after their use in the
project.

5. Needs assessment
 The needs being met though this project is to offer
a fun way to educate the public about
sustainability, and to bring greater attention to the
Walker Art Museum and sculpture gardens. Art
has been used for thousands of years to change
public consciousness towards acceptance of new
and emerging philosophies. In this case, I hope to
create an example that will stick in people’s minds
of sustainability being simple. Rediscovering the
way we have done things in the past when we
incorporated nature into our designs and crafts,
and returning the designs back into the
environment they came from when they have
served their purpose.

6. Strategic recommendations
 Some of the biggest challenges that I faced
were problem solving for design issues such as
stability, durability, usability, choice of
materials, and assessment of sustainability.
Designing for simplicity helped reduce the
issues each some of these challenges. I
wanted to create a simple design motif that
gave me flexibility to use just a few types of
materials. Natural materials such as rocks,
gravel and sand were easy to find for free
and could be used for the project and then
returned back to their proper environment.

7. Stability
 Stability is a very important challenge with the
amount of traffic expected for this course.
The first two levels of pallets (each four inches
high, are anchored with stones from 6-12in. in
diameter, this was an alternative to concrete.
The next two levels will be built on top of that
and except for the area for the chute, will be
further packed with gravel and then sand.
This will then be enclosed with recycled
fiberboard on top. I am planning that the
center garden area will stabilize the structure
more as things settle.

8. Durability
 Durability is a huge concern, as it will be outside
exposed to the elements and weather. The site is
supposed to be dry and not prone to pooling
water, however any standing water must be
eliminated to reduce rot and swelling. This will be
handled by channeling water downhill by use of
sloped areas and leaching water in flat areas.
Without the use of rubber membranes and
sealants this poses a substantial challenge.
Aluminum could be used in flashing the corners
and even the floor, but it would have to be
recycled aluminum and then removed properly
after without adhering it to the fiberboard or
carpet tiles.

9. Usability
 Usability is one of the top three main concerns
because of the height the course needs to be
in order to meet the requirements of the
Walker Art Museum. The course needs to be
as least four inches off the ground and have a
wall of four inches surrounding the fairway. To
have an element like the chute, I needed an
upper level and a lower level, which puts the
height of the sand raking area of the zen
garden at 16 inches high. A Japanese style
walking bridge was my solution to this
problem allowing somewhat easier access
than stepping alone (possibly a code
violation too).

10. Conclusion
The project proposal will be a
starting point for building an
example of sustainable
interactive art. The impact
generated by the amount of
exposure of projects like these,
could help a little to perpetuate
the idea of sustainability into
more than we could imagine at
this point in time. The
development of this project
would depend on a selection
process done by the Walker Art
Museum. If selected, I will start by
fine-tuning any design problems,
gather the proper materials, and
put together a team to assemble
the course. We have two weeks
in the end of May to assemble
the project, then it will open
Memorial Day weekend and be
open to the public till Labor Day.