Diana memorial fountain stirs waters

By RACHEL GOULD
The Associated Press

RICHARD LEWIS / AP Queen Elizabeth; Prince Philip, in hat; and other officials inspect a fountain built in memory of Diana, Princess of Wales, yesterday.

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As she dedicated the fountain, Queen Elizabeth acknowledged there had been difficult times with her late daughter-in-law but said "memories mellow with the passing of the years."

Water flows from the highest point down both sides of the fountain, which stretches 260 feet by 160 feet. At some places the flow is agitated, at others calm.

Completed nearly seven years after Diana's death, the $6.5 million memorial came in for some harsh criticism.

"It's a waste of money; it's just a funny canal," said Reginald Overy of suburban London. "They should have a statue of Diana in the middle. It's ridiculous — it's a paddling pool for children."

Youngsters were happy with the design, however. "You get to splash your annoying cousins." said Sophie Spillard, 17, one of the first to kick off her shoes and wade in the big ring of flowing water created in Hyde Park.

"They build statues of everyone and this is just a bit different," said the annoying cousin, 10-year-old Jonathan Cowie.

Diana's brother, her sons and one of her best friends all expressed satisfaction. "I think she would have loved it. It's fun. It's a clever design. It's inclusive," said the brother, Earl Spencer.

The fountain, designed by Seattle-based landscape designer Kathryn Gustafson, was intended to invite kids to jump in, echoing Diana's own affability and warmth.

"I chose it and I stand by it," said Diana's friend Rosa Monckton, who chaired the Memorial Fountain Committee. "It's today in the sunlight that you see the point of it."

Gustafson is a Yakima native who has gained increasing prominence on the international landscape scene. In Seattle, Gustafson works with partners Jennifer Guthrie and Shannon Nichol at their waterfront office and commutes to London to oversee projects there. Her Seattle design projects include the promenade at McCaw Hall and the new Civic Center complex downtown. Other projects include the Lurie Garden at the new Millennium Park in Chicago, the award-winning terrace at New York's American Museum for Natural History and the Garden of Forgiveness in Beirut, Lebanon.
 
The queen was joined by her husband, Prince Philip, Diana's former husband, Prince Charles, and their children, princes William and Harry as well as Diana's brother.

"I remember especially the happiness she gave to my two grandsons," the queen said of William and Harry.

Diana died in a car crash in Paris at age 36 on Aug. 31, 1997.

Seattle Times visual-arts critic Sheila Farr contributed to this article.