The Cedar Dell at Green-Wood Cemetery

Brooklyn, NY
(2019 - 2021)

NBW worked with Green-Wood Cemetery to develop a concept design for the Cedar Dell at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, a National Historic Landmark. This space is a one-acre bowl-shaped landscape made up of parcels owned by Green-Wood and by First Dutch Reform Church. The oldest graves here date to the 18th Century.  NBW’s design celebrates the natural topography of the space by proposing a central allée of canopy trees spilling out of the south side, while views from the northern rim into the space are preserved, allowing for the continuation of successful performance art programming. The burial plan includes traditional and green burials as well as scattering gardens. New headstones and a collective memorial help to strike a balance between the historic and future-looking nature of this sacred space.