When it comes to designing urban spaces, there are many factors that need consideration. Things like safety, delineation, and style all need to be part of the equation when creating a public space.
The bollard or fixed barrier plays a role in all of these areas. Bollards are stationary, often upright barriers that mark the edge of an area and help prevent cars or traffic from passing into a space. Bollards were once considered strictly practical additions to an area, but with modern design techniques and new materials, the bollard has begun to take on new life and personality.
Modern bollard design can take on many forms. The bollard can become part of the design of an area, part of a building or company’s brand, or a work of art in its own right. Take a look at these contemporary bollards to help redefine the urban landscape.
Modern and Contemporary Bollard Designs
1. Multifunctional Bollards
Bollards were once strictly upright metal poles, possibly painted to match their surroundings. Today’s bollards can take on many different shapes, however, including sleek, contemporary stone squares.
These bollards can double as seating in parks and between buildings and parking lots, thereby accomplishing two tasks at once.
2. Minimalist Bollards
Bollards don’t need to be large to be effective. Sometimes, they can be thin and of varying heights. These stainless steel bollards get the job done with minimal footprints and addition to the surrounding area.
3. Building Blocks
There are few shapes more contemporary in design or style than the cube. Large or small, finished in steel or a variety of bold colors, cube designs are able to blend in or stand out as you need them to.
4. Standard Shape Reinvented
The standard bollard shape is usually a plain pole, slightly rounded at the tip. This shape is just reminiscent enough of tradition to make it easily identifiable, but with a sleeker, more contemporary silhouette.
5. Light It Up
Bollards need to be easily seen and identifiable in day or night. These bollards emit enough light to make them highly visible at any time of day, yet they’re still low profile enough to blend in seamlessly with their surroundings.
6. An Unobscured View
Bollards need to be large enough to be seen in order to create an effective barrier, but that doesn’t mean they need to block out the view. These bollards have a cut out in the top portion that creates a unique three-dimensional look, while allowing an unimpeded view.
7. Dual-Purpose Design
With their positioning at the edges of properties, parks, and parking lots, a bollard is often in the perfect space to become a bike rack. These thin, minimalist bollards can double as bike stations for busy urban areas.
8. Make It a Sphere
Round, spherical designs have a playful appearance to them that almost encourages you to interact. Creating the bollard out of stone or concrete gives it a visual weight as well as actual mass. These bollards can complement a wide range of areas, including those places that need a touch of whimsy in their environment.
9. Simple Design
Sometimes a simple look will suit an area best. In this case, the concrete material of the bollards is a better compliment to the area than a metal design would be. These bollards make an ideal barrier, without creating a statement of their own. Instead, they’ll blend in well with most urban environments, as if they grew straight up from the pavement.
10. Integral Branding
Bollards are frequently positioned in the fronts of businesses and buildings. So, consider making it work for you as a sign or amplification of your brand, rather than just as a barrier. Bollards can be cut to feature logos, signs, brands, and other details that can help people identify a business.
11. Tilted Design
When you want something a little more subtle than a sphere, but you still want to add a little whimsy to an area, consider a gently tilting bollard. A line of bollards that are leaning at different angles or into different directions can add a slightly playful touch without overwhelming the area.
Create a More Modern Bollard Design
Bollards are a necessary part of most urban landscapes, but that doesn’t mean they all need to look identical to one another, or that they need to be plain or boring in design.
Contemporary bollard design means incorporating images, details, colors, and materials that are already found in the area, and using them in more unexpected ways. Doing so can make the bollard stand out, which is part of what makes it a functional part of the architecture.
