End Scene reimagines the traditional hedge maze as an immersive, interactive cultural artifact, drawing inspiration from Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining. Conceived as both homage and reinterpretation, the project transforms the manicured landscape into a space of collective authorship and shared experience. The maze is structured through three interrelated strategies—disorientation, subtext, and transformation—each designed to heighten spatial and narrative complexity.

Disorientation is achieved by echoing the film’s continuous, maze-like sequences through loops, backtracks, dead ends, and a singular gathering room. These spatial devices resist linear progression, compelling visitors to confront ambiguity and repetition as part of the journey. Subtext is introduced through curated moments that invite multiple readings. Over time, guest curators—including authors, musicians, directors, and artists—can add layers of interpretation, ensuring the maze evolves as a dynamic, living archive. Transformation emphasizes duplicity and scale: visitors first encounter a miniature version in the lobby, adopting the role of “Watcher,” before entering the full maze as the “Watched,” reversing positions within the experiential field.

Composed of 722 linear feet with six loops, two backtracks, and seven dead ends, End Scene operates simultaneously as landscape, performance, and exhibition, offering both immediacy and renewal with each visit.

For: The Stanley Hotel, Estes Park, Colorado

Size / Scale / Area: 10,100 sf

Type: Outdoor installation

Competition Jury: John Cullen, Owner, The Stanley Hotel; Midge Knerr, Lodge Inn Keeper, The Stanley Hotel; Wendy Koenig, Mayor Pro Tem, Town of Estes Park; Tom Botelho, Executive Director, Denver Film Society; Merlyn Paulson, Prof. Landscape Architecture, Colorado State University; Harriette Woodard, Community Member, Estes Park; Cydney Springer, Artist, Estes Park