Jens Jensen Park

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The council ring at Jens Jensen Park, designed by landscape architect
Jens Jensen.  Photo by Bob Laemle.

Jens Jensen Park

540 Roger Williams Avenue

Highland Park, IL

The Treasure:  The vision of influential landscape architect Jens Jensen is beautifully expressed by this very faithful restoration of a park he designed for his hometown.

Accessibility:  Relax in the park whenever you’re in the neighborhood!

Background:  “The art of landscaping is that of a fleeting thought that must be caught on the wing.”  Jens Jensen (1860-1951)

Jens Jensen was a Danish immigrant who worked himself up from a job as a street sweeper for the Chicago West Parks District to superintendent of the Chicago Parks Commission. Influenced both by famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmstead (designer of New York City’s Central Park) and visionary architect Frank Lloyd Wright, Jensen brought many of the ideas of Wright’s Prairie Style to bear on his designs for parkland and estate grounds. He embraced the native plants and trees of the Midwest, creating parks in harmony with the original natural landscape of the area.

Jensen's plan for the park.

Built within a triangle formed by three roads, Jens Jensen Park accomplishes much within a fairly small area. Jensen loved meadows, so he planned for two adjacent meadow areas, each ringed by native trees. Naturally, the park contains one of his trademark features, a council ring. Inspired by his respect for Native American circles, Jensen envisioned his council rings as areas where neighbors could gather and exchange ideas, quietly appreciate nature, or even stage theatrical productions. In the center of the Jens Jensen Park council ring, he designed a circular lily pond centered on a handsome rough-hewn granite boulder.

Landscape architecture is notoriously short-lived. Many of Jensen’s parks are no longer recognizably his work. Thanks to the 2005-2007 restoration led by landscape architects Nick and Amy Patera of Teska Associates, you can still experience the authentic vision of Jens Jensen in Highland Park.

Before:  The council ring at Jens Jensen Park before the restoration.

After:  The council ring at Jens Jensen Park after the restoration.
Photo by Bob Laemle.

New benches in the restored Jens Jensen Park.
Photo by Bob Laemle.

Other Recommended Sites:  Jensen’s home and studio are located just a few blocks away at 950 Dean Avenue. Although they are not open to the public, you can pass by to pay homage to his work and influence. In addition to being the home of Jens Jensen for many years, Highland Park is also notable for houses designed by some of Chicago’s greatest architects, including Frank Lloyd Wright, John S. Van Bergen, Howard Van Doren Shaw, and David Adler. Architectural Resources in Highland Park, Illinois is a detailed PDF document that provides a thorough background on the varied, and often masterful, architecture of Highland Park.

A new sign for the restored Jens Jensen Park in Highland Park.
Photo by Bob Laemle.

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© 2012 Lee Price