1:500 · project · urban

Páramo Topography

Separador vial · Centro Internacional, Bogotá · 2026 · urban

01/11aerial viewconcept

The whole

A páramo of steel on a road median: 336 tubes and Andean succulents, dense at the ends, scattered in the middle.

programme: urban
place: Separador vial · Centro Internacional, Bogotá
year: 2026
Median: 85.00 × 2.50 m
Pieces: 336 tubes in 5 diameters (Ø48", 36", 24", 16", 10")
Material: 58 six-metre tubes · galvanised steel, corten-look epoxy

03/11interiorconcept

West end

Large and close

level: ground floor · ±0.00
use: high density
colour temperature: 2,700–3,000 K

materials and finishes
Tubes	Galvanised steel, 6 m tube cut to lengthtextured corten-look epoxy · ground top edge
Planting	Echeveria (blue-grey rosette)low rosette · drip irrigation
Bed and topping	Loose gravel on topsoil, geotextile and crushed stonegrey river gravel · free-draining

furniture

Ø48" and Ø36" tubes, 1.20 and 0.90 m tall

lighting

Recessed projector in the gravel at the foot of each large tube, 2700 K, 40° beam; street poles at 3000 K

The 48- and 36-inch tubes nearly touch: the corten-look steel forms a 1.20 m undulating wall and blue echeverias crown each mouth. It is the median’s gateway to the avenue.

04/11interiorconcept

The succulents

A páramo at hand

level: ground floor · ±0.00
use: planting detail
colour temperature: 2,700–3,000 K

materials and finishes
Planting	Sedum and Echeverialow rosette · drip irrigation
Bed and topping	Loose gravel on topsoil, geotextile and crushed stonegrey river gravel · free-draining
Tubes	Galvanised steel, 6 m tube cut to lengthtextured corten-look epoxy · ground top edge

furniture

Ø24" tubes, 0.60 m tall

lighting

Recessed projector in the gravel at the foot of each large tube, 2700 K, 40° beam; street poles at 3000 K

Inside each tube, top to bottom: Andean-climate succulents, loose gravel, topsoil with gravel, geotextile, crushed stone and a sand base. Green sedum and echeveria share this stretch; they need little water and stand the cold at 2,600 m.

05/11interiorconcept

The middle

Small and scattered

level: ground floor · ±0.00
use: low density
colour temperature: 2,700–3,000 K

materials and finishes
Planting	Graptopetalum and Sedumlow rosette · drip irrigation
Kerb	Grey graniteflamed · flush with the gravel
Bed and topping	Loose gravel on topsoil, geotextile and crushed stonegrey river gravel · free-draining

furniture

Ø16" and Ø10" tubes, 0.40 and 0.25 m tall

lighting

Recessed projector in the gravel at the foot of each large tube, 2700 K, 40° beam; street poles at 3000 K

In the middle, the 16- and 10-inch tubes, 0.40 and 0.25 m tall, sit loose on the gravel: the median drops and lets the view pass from one sidewalk to the other. Pink graptopetalum marks the halfway point.

06/11interiorconcept

East end

It rises again

level: ground floor · ±0.00
use: high density
colour temperature: 2,700–3,000 K

materials and finishes
Tubes	Galvanised steel, 6 m tube cut to lengthtextured corten-look epoxy · ground top edge
Planting	Sempervivum (red rosette)low rosette · drip irrigation
Kerb	Grey graniteflamed · flush with the gravel

furniture

Ø48" and Ø36" tubes

lighting

Recessed projector in the gravel at the foot of each large tube, 2700 K, 40° beam; street poles at 3000 K

Toward the east the density returns: tall, close tubes, red and orange sempervivum. Looking west, the median reads whole as a topography that falls and rises, with the viaduct and the towers beyond.

3D walk-through

← all work

place: Separador vial · Centro Internacional, Bogotá
year: 2026
use: urban
Status: Proposal
Median: 85.00 × 2.50 m
Pieces: 336 tubes in 5 diameters (Ø48", 36", 24", 16", 10")
Material: 58 six-metre tubes · galvanised steel, corten-look epoxy

A páramo of steel on a road median: 336 tubes and Andean succulents, dense at the ends and scattered in the middle.

A t1x1 project. Andean succulents. A metal topography reinterprets the Andean páramos in the heart of the city: a field of galvanised steel cylinders with a textured corten-look epoxy finish, arranged along a density gradient and planted with high-Andean succulents, turns 85 metres of road median into an urban-scale built landscape.

The median measures 85.00 × 2.50 m on the street north of the Centro Internacional towers, from the east sidewalk of Av. Caracas, beneath the Line 1 metro viaduct. Five tube diameters —48, 36, 24, 16 and 10 inches, from 1.20 to 0.25 m tall— add up to 336 pieces cut from 58 six-metre tubes.

The rule is parametric: along the median, large, close tubes gather at the ends and small ones scatter in the middle; across it, the tall ones sit on the axis and the low ones by the kerbs, from 0.30 m to 1.60 m with the plants. Inside each tube: alpine tundra plants, loose gravel, topsoil with gravel, geotextile, crushed stone and a sand base. Echeveria, Sedum, Graptopetalum and Sempervivum shift colour from west to east; projectors at the foot of the large tubes light them at night.

Siting, street section and the true length of the median between Av. Caracas and Carrera 12: to be verified on site.

◆ Design: Gabriel Carvajal · t1x1

The 3D view is not available in this browser.

Living plan · Páramo Topography

A páramo of steel on a road median: 336 tubes and Andean succulents, dense at the ends, scattered in the middle.

01 / 08 · plan · cut at 1.20 m

The median, cut at 1.20 m

85.00 × 2.50 m on the street north of the Centro Internacional towers, from the east sidewalk of Av. Caracas, beneath the Line 1 metro viaduct. Five tube diameters, from 10 to 48 inches: 336 pieces cut from 58 six-metre tubes.

04 / 08 · high density

Large and close

The 48- and 36-inch tubes nearly touch: the corten-look steel forms a 1.20 m undulating wall and blue echeverias crown each mouth. It is the median’s gateway to the avenue.

material schedule
Tubes	Galvanised steel, 6 m tube cut to lengthtextured corten-look epoxy · ground top edge
Planting	Echeveria (blue-grey rosette)low rosette · drip irrigation
Bed and topping	Loose gravel on topsoil, geotextile and crushed stonegrey river gravel · free-draining

furnitureØ48" and Ø36" tubes, 1.20 and 0.90 m tall

lightRecessed projector in the gravel at the foot of each large tube, 2700 K, 40° beam; street poles at 3000 K

05 / 08 · planting detail

A páramo at hand

material schedule
Planting	Sedum and Echeverialow rosette · drip irrigation
Bed and topping	Loose gravel on topsoil, geotextile and crushed stonegrey river gravel · free-draining
Tubes	Galvanised steel, 6 m tube cut to lengthtextured corten-look epoxy · ground top edge

furnitureØ24" tubes, 0.60 m tall

lightRecessed projector in the gravel at the foot of each large tube, 2700 K, 40° beam; street poles at 3000 K

06 / 08 · low density

Small and scattered

material schedule
Planting	Graptopetalum and Sedumlow rosette · drip irrigation
Kerb	Grey graniteflamed · flush with the gravel
Bed and topping	Loose gravel on topsoil, geotextile and crushed stonegrey river gravel · free-draining

furnitureØ16" and Ø10" tubes, 0.40 and 0.25 m tall

lightRecessed projector in the gravel at the foot of each large tube, 2700 K, 40° beam; street poles at 3000 K

07 / 08 · high density

It rises again

Toward the east the density returns: tall, close tubes, red and orange sempervivum. Looking west, the median reads whole as a topography that falls and rises, with the viaduct and the towers beyond.

material schedule
Tubes	Galvanised steel, 6 m tube cut to lengthtextured corten-look epoxy · ground top edge
Planting	Sempervivum (red rosette)low rosette · drip irrigation
Kerb	Grey graniteflamed · flush with the gravel

furnitureØ48" and Ø36" tubes

lightRecessed projector in the gravel at the foot of each large tube, 2700 K, 40° beam; street poles at 3000 K

Project model in metres · proposed materials and furniture, not supplier-verified

Interactive model

Explore the model

The same model as the walk-through, complete with its materials, furniture and people. Turn it, move closer and look at every room from wherever you like.

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next project → Bosa school

Páramo Topography

The median, cut at 1.20 m

A density rule

From Avenida Caracas

Large and close

A páramo at hand

Small and scattered

It rises again

A built topography

Explore the model