Alexandra Greenway, Richmond: DuraTherm public art by Bagua Artist Association

The Alexandra Greenway in Richmond is a community public art and beautification project created in partnership with the Bagua Artist Association. The installation uses DuraTherm, a design-flexible and durable preformed thermoplastic material, inlaid into imprinted asphalt to create a lasting surface artwork along the greenway corridor.

This is the type of project that demonstrates what's possible when public art and surface engineering work together rather than in parallel. The artistic design was developed by the Bagua Artist Association; the surface engineering was our responsibility. The result is a greenway surface that is both a pedestrian pathway and a public artwork.

DuraTherm for complex art installations

DuraTherm is the product we specify when the design complexity exceeds what StreetBond® coatings can achieve. Where StreetBond is excellent for broad colour fields and geometric patterns, DuraTherm allows us to work with intricate design elements: the kind of detail that an artist's design typically demands.

The preformed thermoplastic is manufactured to exact CAD specifications, then thermally inlaid into the asphalt substrate during installation. The material sits at the same level as the surrounding asphalt, not raised above it, which means it doesn't create a trip hazard and doesn't peel at the edges over time.

The systems

Square One installs DuraTherm under our preformed thermoplastic service. The manufacturer's published facts: a thermoplastic pavement marking applied by inset or surface methods, on asphalt or concrete; retroreflective; made to TAC shapes and legends for its road-marking work; resistant to BC freeze-thaw cycles; and a service life well beyond painted markings. The inset method is what matters on a greenway: it is how the thermoplastic ends up flush with the imprinted asphalt around it rather than proud of it. The imprinting itself is stamped asphalt: a heated template pressed into the surface, so the texture is in the pavement rather than on it. Specifications are on the DuraTherm product page; the public art gallery shows artwork rendered in thermoplastic and coatings across BC.

Public art in the civic realm

The Alexandra Greenway project represents a model worth noting: community artist organizations, municipal parks departments, and specialized surface installation contractors working together to create public art that is also functional infrastructure.

The Bagua Artist Association's design is the cultural and creative content. DuraTherm is the delivery mechanism that ensures that content survives BC's climate over a multi-year timeframe.

Greenways are a recurring setting for this kind of work in our record. The Agnes Greenway in New Westminster carries a TrafficPatterns™ design by Rain Pierre of Katzie First Nation, and the concourse at Joyce SkyTrain Station carries Renée Van Halm's "Carpeting" in StreetBond, three materials, one principle: the artwork is in the surface, not on it.

For a parks department or artist collective

• Pick the material by the artwork. Fine line and lettering suit inset thermoplastic; broad colour suits coating; a stamped texture gives either something to sit in. Many pieces use more than one.
• Design for feet and wheels. A greenway carries strollers, bikes and wheelchairs; flush inlay and anti-skid finishes keep the art from becoming an obstacle.
• Proof at full scale. The cut file is the artwork's last edit; a full-size print on the path before cutting catches what a screen cannot.

For public art projects requiring durable surface installation across BC, send the artwork and a photo of the site, or a postal code, to office@squareonepaving.com, call 604-612-6209, or use the contact form. We come out, look, and put a written quote together.