Fort Worth Water Gardens

The Fort Worth Water Gardens are the most striking free sight in either city and the one most visitors have never heard of before they arrive. Dedicated in 1974 as a gift from the Amon G. Carter Foundation to the City of Fort Worth, the park was designed by the architects Philip Johnson and John Burgee as a sculptural landscape of concrete terraces, trees and moving water, and it still feels startlingly modern half a century later. There are three main water features, each with a different mood. The Active Pool is the showstopper: water rushes down a steep, stepped concrete canyon into a basin some 38 feet below, and table-topped stairs let you descend partway into the roar — standing at the lookout as the water thunders past is the classic photograph, and it feels like entering a waterfall built by a modernist. The Aerating Pool is lighter and playful, with dozens of nozzles throwing up plumes of spray across a broad basin. The Quiet Pool, near the Wet Wall, is the opposite: a sunken, tree-shaded rectangle of still water enclosed by walls, where the city noise drops away. Film buffs will recognize the gardens from the 1976 science-fiction film Logan's Run, which used them as a futuristic city. The park sits on the south edge of downtown beside the Fort Worth Convention Center, open from early morning to late evening, with no admission charge. It takes half an hour to see properly, longer if you sit with a coffee. Honest caveats: the concrete gets hot in summer afternoons, some features may be off for maintenance at times, and swimming and wading are strictly prohibited — this is a place to look, listen and photograph, not to splash.

The gardens have a serious side to their history. In 2004 a fatal accident in the Active Pool led to its closure and to safety redesigns before it reopened, and the city now asks visitors to treat the water as they would a lake or a stream, with no swimming or wading. Signs are posted, and the rule matters especially for children, who are naturally drawn toward the water's edge. With that understood, the park remains one of the great pieces of American landscape architecture of the 1970s and a gift that Fort Worth clearly treasures.

Practicalities: the Water Gardens are at 1502 Commerce Street, open daily from early morning until late evening, and free. Street parking and paid garages are nearby, and the downtown Fort Worth Central Station for Trinity Railway Express trains from Dallas is a short walk away, which makes this an easy first stop for travelers arriving by rail. The steps in the Active Pool are uneven and can be wet; wear shoes with grip and hold small children's hands. The space can be rented for events and photo shoots, so you may find a wedding party or film crew at weekends.

How to do it well: come in the morning or early evening, when the light is soft on the concrete and the heat is manageable, start at the Quiet Pool to appreciate the contrast, then finish with the descent into the Active Pool. From here, walk north about ten minutes to Sundance Square for lunch and the plaza, catch a show at Bass Performance Hall in the evening, or drive fifteen minutes to the Cultural District museums. Photographers should bring a wide-angle lens; the geometry is the subject.