The Friends Cascades
http://www.anbg.gov.au/gardens/visiting/exploring/public-art/friends-cascade/index.html
A unique cascading water sculpture located near the visitor’s center celebrates and represents the Friends of the ANBG. There are five flowforms that the friends created as stonework flowing like a waterfall stepped stream. It is based on the natural water movement re-invigorating water to greet visitors to the Australian National Botanic gardens. The Cascades have mesmerizing rhythms and movements that the friends say is representative of waterwise ideas in landscaping. It came about as a artistic project in 2003 by adapting a waterfall that was already flowing into the pond below that became damaged due to a irreparable leak. The original waterfall had been shut off, causing stagnation of the pond. The Gardens proposed to restore it, and the friends of ANBG came together to make the current creation. The flowforms are vessels emulating the swirls and vorices of a mountain stream enabling the water to re-oxygenate, revitalise, and rejuvenate itself creating a more natural state. These are setup at varying angles to give different effects as the flow of the water makes its way into the pond. The system is self-sustaining preventing loss of water from evaporation. The runoff is colleced from the adjacent building that tops up the pond as well as via a rain water tank storage for long dry periods. Its secret is the “figure of 8” movement it creates in the water as the lemniscate folding oxygen into the water.
