New nature, Cultural landscapes & Travel

Memorial for the murdered Jews of Europe, Berlin

2007-08-17T12:54:00.000-07:00

The 19,000 square-meter Memorial for the murdered Jews of Europe, which was opened to the public on May 12, 2005, consists of 2711 stones placed on sloping, uneven ground in an undulating wave-like pattern, in the heart of Berlin, just next to the Tiergarten.

What a place. You can get completely lost in this space, and become a bit scared of where you are or who you may run into. Flashes of skin and clothing appear and dissapear with a ghostlike quality. A powerful space; heavy, yet light and airy; where consistency is there, yet skewed. I was taken on an emotional and thoughtful ride, I'm not entirely sure where I went, however the journey was remarkable. I fully appreciate such spaces, where a visitor is moved into a different realm, yet each visitor's experience is totally different, and needs no explanation or anything further than just that. Well done, Mr. Eisenman. An interesting article on the cracks forming in the stones (in French)

Hannoversch Münden

2007-08-17T12:30:00.000-07:00

Documenta, Kassel

2007-08-17T11:39:00.000-07:00

Giant modern art show, once every 5 years in Kassel, Germany. For me, it was way out of scale, too huge, too much to see. An art overkill, for sure. I liked this first poppy flower field, however the different species were supposed to represent something, and I've forgotten. Many of the pieces in the various exhibits were in need of explanation, many things we as viewers were supposed to understand. How things are allusions to this or that, or how other objects represent some situation. I find this to be incredibly uninteresting, and sometimes completely ridiculous. For example, a red rope strung about was supposed to represent something to do with the struggle of women in Africa. First of all, how is this connection made without verbal explanation, and secondly, it is almost a travesty to represent something such as the incredible plight of women in Africa by a red rope strung about in an art gallery. I don't understand. Why is this here, why is it art? To me it lacks any form of pleasure or beauty. Beauty can be understood as aesthetically pleasing, but also if I feel moved in a way or if I am taken on a new path of thought, I find this to be beautiful. The path I followed over and over at Documenta was, "What the hell is that?" While this can be seen as an ignorant reaction, to me it is completely legitimate.

It was so good to see you guys again, I look forward to the next time we meet and eat together.

Brombeermarmelade. Jam.

2007-07-05T08:23:00.000-07:00

Thanks Till & Judith

Route Industrienatur

2007-07-05T08:22:00.001-07:00

Translation in Progress...

Landschaftspark Duisburg-Nord, day 2

2007-07-05T08:16:00.000-07:00

Gießhalle, home of many concerts during the year. While I was there, it was closed off, so I didn't get to see where the stage was.

Piazza Metallica

Here, different species have settled in most likely a similar soil. It seems like landscape architects could learn from this, that these species could make up sort of a palette to draw from, when making up a planting plan. Or at least this could inform a designer in a useful way. These are the plants which require no maintenance whatsoever, and obviously have a range of colour, texture, etc.

Scuba centre, however it was closed during my visit. It's too bad, I have been wanting to make use of my scuba license.

Heaps of old material are quite prevalent at the site, and plants have taken up residence where they can. These places are in the first stages of succession, so only true pioneer species can live here. For example, blackberry bushes are often seen in places such as this.

The sewage canal could not remain as it existed on the site, and is now underground. A new canal has taken the place of the old, but now flows with fresh rainwater, it is kept as straight as it was before, not more 'naturally' shaped.

Duisburg was a wonderful place for me, it is a place that gives me some hope for landscape architecture. Peter Latz, the main landscape architect, allowed the polluted soils to remain in place and be remediated through phytoremediation, and sequestered soils with high toxicity in the existing bunkers. These are now places where succession is taking place. I really enjoyed my time here, and the berries.

Landschaftspark Duisburg-Nord, day 1

2007-07-05T07:21:00.000-07:00

At the heart of the park stands the former Meiderich Ironworks which were closed down in 1985. There is a free-climbing zond amongst the old bunkers. The old gasometer is now a water diving centre. It is also a venue for concerts, films, shows, and theatre. It was one of the largest projects of the IBA Emscher park project. Here is day 1.

I found a lunch spot, under this structure. It rained all day, which was a bit of a bummer, since I was already fighting off a cold. Either way, my lunch spot allowed me to listen to the rain attacking the metal structures around me, and other structures nearby.

Main entry way to the park. Tree plantings in very formal rows, which contrast to the informal nature of the built structures and the natural plants there.

There is sort of a main walkway, which is demarcated by these blue fences. It leads you across the canal and up over the small garden plots.

Looking down from the walkway, there are several of these different gardens, each has its own style.

There are many signs on the site, totally in German, but they depict things from the wildlife that now lives at the site to the processes of making coke.

Lookout from an old heap of slag, now it is the main lookout point at the park. It provides an excellent view of the park, and a look at the surroundings.

These last two photos are depicting some of my favourite things of Duisburg. The details. Wonderful details can be found all over the site, where new vs. old is depicted, or nature vs. industry, etc. The diversity of detail at the site helps to make it such a rich place.

Leading away from the main site, there are three roughly parallel walkways, two elevated, and the other ground level. These are coinciding with former railway lines leading away from the site. Beautiful arrays of wildflowers and blackberry plants have taken up residence here.

Super cool slide, there were 3 or 4 kids in there during this time, I think they were playing clog the slide.

Some of the old bunkers have been sealed off, and now are in different stages of natural development. They are inaccessible, but are very interesting from the catwalk above.

All over the site are plants like this that can somehow live in these places.

Kokerei Hansa

2007-07-05T06:45:00.001-07:00

The Hansa Coking Plant is the last of the 17 coking plants which were built during the rationalisation boom in the 1920s. It was part of an integrated system with the nearby colliery and steelworks. It was closed down in 1992 and is now part of the Industrienatur and Industriekultur routes. Visitors can walk around this gigantic sculpture and see the plants that have settled in various places.

Typical German

Similar to Zollverein, there are small plantings that clarify the route of tours.

Places throughout the site manifest different stages of plant succession, responding to the conditions present.

These last two photos show some of the subtle yet striking colour contrasts that are prevalent at the site. Structures that are in various stages of decay or made of slightly different material give off a different colour as well as plant species that locate themselves where conditions are most suitable .

The Poppy flower, which is mentioned in Gilles Clément's 'Manifeste du Tiers Paysage' -- "Il apparaît sur une terre retournée ou blessée. Pas ailleurs." (It appears on 'returned' or injured lands. Not elsewhere.)

Guided tours are available, however, unfortunately not in English or French...So I tagged around this bunch for awhile, but couldn't understand much of the guide's explanations.

Nordsternpark

2007-07-05T06:10:00.000-07:00

The site of the former Nordstern Colliery was redesigned for the National Garden Show in 1997. Surviving old buildings have been modernised and carefully adapted to provide surface areas for business and trade. Also, 140 residential houses and flats have been built nearby. This park is very well used, with a large ampitheatre and areas for dog play and kinderland, and a playground for children.

Water fountain near the entrance of the park. Its interesting to see how algae have formed along the banks, similar to how sediment gets deposited along the curves of streams.

Visit this link for more information on this graffiti wall, it was originally done by 35 artists in May of 2005, but will be legally redesigned continuously.

Here is an example of what Nordsternpark was for me. It is full of juxtapositions, particularly dealing with plants. Here, cultivated roses are on the side of the path which eventually leads to the look-out point. On the other side, plants are allowed to develop in a more free manner. This type of juxtaposition exists in different scales throughout the park. Some areas were quite striking, where one place had been embellished with colourful or strictly managed species, and right beside one could find plants developing as they would naturally at this site.

Schurenbachhalde

2007-07-05T05:13:00.000-07:00

The Schurenbach tip, Essen-Altenessen: The 15 metre high steel slab created by the sculptor Richard Serra is one of the most prominent landmarks in the Ruhrgebiet. It is quite amazing, the view is over most of the region, with smokestacks and other industrial buildings protruding from the landscape.

It was quite a difficult journey climbing up this hill, however I had loads of blackberries to keep me going. This plant exists nearly everywhere in this region.

There is a certain threshold where plants no longer grow as you get closer to the sculpture.

Signs clearly tell those traveling by bicycle where they are and the distance to the nearest anchor points.

Welterbe Zollverein

2007-07-05T03:21:00.000-07:00

The Colliery and the Coking Plant at the Zollverein World Heritage site. This plant was closed down in 1986, until then, 12,000 tons of coal per day were brought to the surface, prepared and turned into coke here. It is now the main visitors centre for the Ruhrgebiet region. This region can be further explained by following this Wikipedia link. It is the 5th largest urban area in the world, occupied by 5.3 million people. I spent a week here, staying in Essen West and traveling everyday by trains or tram. It really is like one large city, with no real centre. It began its rapid growth during the industrial revolution, and after 1960, the area went through problems resulting from the closing of most of its factories. During the 1980s, the International Building Exhibition (IBA) Emscher Park was begun to give a strong boost to the derelict river Emscher area and with a goal of urban development and ecological renewal. Here is a good article giving a description of the project.

Visitor's Centre. Excellent range of descriptions, bookstore, café; however nearly everything was in German. The information assistants can all speak english, and most large signs have small english captions, but all brochures except a select few are in German. A bit difficult for me, I wasn't able to continue my German studies last semester due to other required courses. I am dissapointed, I feel as though my time here would have been richer if I could have been stronger in German.

This as well as other sites along the region are part of the 'Industrienatur' route, where the reclamation of the sites by nature is celebrated. Here, interesting juxtapositions of planted species, which were intended to more clearly demarcate routes on the site, were next to spaces where nature was colonising by its own logic.

A popular way to explore the Ruhr region is by bicycle. It isn't too expensive, and is probably the best way to really explore the region.

Borneo Sporenburg, Amsterdam

2007-07-05T02:41:00.000-07:00

In Amsterdam, Borneo Sporenburg is a development which was created in the years 1993-1997. About sixty architects worked on the project, guided by a master plan developed by the firm West 8. The plan demanded a 30%-50% void in each of the individual homes, where residents could create small gardens, or whatever they wanted. The roads are constructed as 'woonerfs' where the road is shared by pedestrian, cyclist, and autos. It is in the north-east part of Amsterdam, reachable by tram. An incredibly windy place, I strolled around for an afternoon.

Spaces at the tip of one of the quays were left, seemingly forgotten. It looks as though an attempt was made at collective open space, but unsuccessful. It is now an interesting space with regards to plants, however not really used at all.

There are two bridges connecting the neighbourhoods. The first, shown here, is designed in a way to permit sail boats to pass underneath. The other is much more flat, to allow for cyclists to cross. It is quite an experience going over it, at least it was for me, during such high winds. Plus its red, and has these lights, see below.

People have colonised the sidewalks through plants, in different manners, and different intensities.

Eurasian coot (Fulica atra)

The quays have been colonised by the 'Armada of Amsterdam' (people who live on their boats). Its quite beautiful, people have created small gardens here and there, on their boats or leading up to land. Even with very little or no space, people manage to make gardens.

Nordsee mud ecosystem

2007-06-23T10:46:00.001-07:00

I stayed in Nordenham, Germany with my friend Jens for a week, and we visited the North Sea two times. It is a fascinating ecosystem that is extremely important for many reasons. Have a look at this website for a better description. We had a guided tour, where we walked around and looked at the various organisms. It is a place incredibly rich in biodiversity, and is extremely important for migratory birds and seals. Thanks Jens for letting me stay, and for getting to feed the chickens.

The tide is as high as the pole during high tide. We went right at low tide, and observed the tide beginning to come in. This is quite rapid, and many people get lost at sea by wandering too far or swimming out too far during low tide. Especially on foggy days, one has no way of getting oriented in such a place.

go america

2007-06-23T10:36:00.000-07:00

Why would anyone do this? Clearly this guy was someone off of the American military base, and was proud of it. The sheer size of this truck (which is normal in America) dwarfed the majority of German cars on the road. It baffles me to think of people who go to foreign countries and do not even attempt to change, rather they do things like this, and ignore the new place and culture they can learn from. Plus this just looks totally idiotic, no matter where in the world you would see this.

Blue Bowl Remark

2007-06-23T10:34:00.001-07:00

From a discussion at the cottage in Groningen after breakfast with the coloured bowls:

The way landscape architecture is practiced, particularly when dealing with plants, is extremely troubling. It is not much more than setting a table, arranging elements in a way to be beautiful or after an idea of function. Setting a table can be something quite elegant & beautiful, or something done at the last minute and random. Elements are used and judged based on need or their aesthetic combination, or both. When landscape architects use plants in design, they are not realizing the extended impacts of these organisms. Trees do more than cast shade and change colour, they are also shelters for birds, interact with insects, and are living organisms that produce O2 during the day and CO2 during the night. They are alive, and affect the environment much further than after the 1-year contract period is up. It’s a bit strange that we do not work with ecologists or attempt to understand much of anything of the functionality and interdependence of ecosystems we create, no matter the scale. Landscape architects need to understand the function of nature now on a range of scales, as it exists in places such as the urban friche in order to make places that will work, and not something that follows some sort of idealized view of nature. To keep such romantic visions of nature functioning, it requires some incredibly dominant management procedures, which are deterring landscape architecture's brightest potential, to work with change.

Groningen, NL

2007-06-23T09:59:00.001-07:00

I spent a few days in Groningen, working with Yvan and exploring a bit. We were looking at cells of birds in the artic which is part of a project that a team of scientists are going to be working on this summer. They are now in Spitzbergen, doing feild research. Have a look at Yvan's Blog for more information on the continuation of the project. Super nice people, and a nice relaxing time.

Incredibly huge flowers, growing along the bike paths around Groningen. These are fast growing, 'weed' species, yet are quite beautiful and interesting.

My bike for the week, we got along allright, although she was quite noisy.

Where we were staying was a sort of campground, but for cottages. There were several of these gardens around, where they had let plants grow freely, similar to the idea of a jardin en mouvement. Next door, more cultivated plants were in the garden, so this was a smaller scale of the same kind of juxtaposition at Parc André Citroën.

The biggest slugs I've ever seen exist in the Netherlands.

The cottage, no electricity, no water, but a great place, very relaxing. Thanks Yvan for letting me stay, it was really a nice time.

A perfect example of the urban friche. In the city, this space existed without development. Whether it was this way because of underground conditions, or some other reason, it manifested a beautiful range of plants naturally occuring in the city. These are the type of spaces where biodiversity in the city is incredibly rich. I'm still reading 'Manifeste du Tiers Paysage', where Gilles Clément writes about this type of landscape and its function on a larger scale. Places like this are refuges for diversity, and are exciting manifestations of new nature.

Schouwburgplein, Rotterdam

2007-06-15T07:20:00.001-07:00

Plaza near the Rotterdam central train station, designed by West 8. I was just in passing in Rotterdam, but spent a few hours having lunch and wandering around Rotterdam. I found this space to be quite stimulating, and very well used. There is currently an installation called "Brandende Stad/Bloeiende Stad" (City on Fire/City in bloom)on display which was also designed by West 8. It is intended to make the flames of the Nazi bombing on May 14th, 1940 symbolically visible, and to remind visitors of the blossoming of Rotterdam following the war. It is quite beautiful, alive, and with imperfections, which I found to make it all the more interesting. Kyle informed me of the Project for Public Space's opinion on this square, see this article which is in fact on their 'hall of shame' list. Personally, I found it to be a fantastic space.

Taking a bath

Sequence of the light fixture's movement (subtle in photograph) after I pressed some buttons on the device. I couldn't read the digital screen, due to the light. I also barely speak a word of Dutch, which is proving to be a bit embarrasing while I am here.

Parc Matisse, Lille

2007-06-11T08:42:00.000-07:00

Parc Matisse is just next to Gare Lille Europe, one of two large train stations in Lille.

Anyhow the park was designed by Gilles Clément and others, with intent to follow the principles of a jardin en mouvement. I didn't really enjoy this one, I thought the scale of it was off. In contrast with Parc André Citroën, I felt that too much of this park was this way. It was to the point where it was somewhat banal. Clearly this park has gone in to a state of disrepair, as much of Lille's public spaces have. Lille is definetely worth a go, if you are interested in seeing something different. The architectural composition of the city is incredibly strange, and there is a real mix of cultures in Lille. I think the people here are generally nice, they are willing to give directions and help you. However, I don't want to stay any longer, and tomorrow I'm going to the Netherlands.

A large island, called Derborence island, is intended to be a replica of a remote island, planted with an inaccessible forest. It is more of an experimental site for scientists to see what plants will settle in there in the absense of human activitiy. I recall at the conference in the Pompidou centre M. Clément remarked that if he could, he would like to do this one over. However, he said he does like to go there from time to time, to see what plants have come in and which ones have left.

Transphotographiques festival, Lille

2007-06-11T08:17:00.000-07:00

Photography and cinema festival, I went to the TriPostal in Lille for an afternoon, and enjoyed three floors of amazing photos, short films, and interesting spaces. In fact, there are photos all over Lille, posted in large format in many other public spaces/venues. Please visit:

http://www.transphotographiques.com/

Les murs végétaux, Patrick Blanc

2007-06-11T01:11:00.000-07:00

Close to the garden festival at Chaumont-sur-Loire, but a permanent part of the gardens, located in the 'experimental garden'. Three walls of varying height and plant material by Patrick Blanc (the same designer for the green façade at Musée du Quai Branly).

Why install plants on a vertical surface?
Surely, the appearance of vegetated walls for the festival in 1994 left more than one visiter perplexed. Nearly 10 years later, they still exist after having been transferred to the experimental garden. Since then, many others have been constructed for individuals or in public spaces. The challenge was to find a way to place the plants in permanent contact with water. The method adopted was simple: A metal frame is covered with an expanded pane of PVC and a rot-proof cloth for irrigation. A closed irrigation circuit programmed by a clock assures, for the top, a permanent dampening of the planted surfaces. The water transports the necessary minerals and trace elements to the developing plants before reaching the foot of the wall where it is re-pumped. Installed in small pockets of the same type of cloth, the plants colonise the walls freely, while developping their roots between the synthetic cloth and the pane of PVC.

Mobiles! Des jardins pour un monde en mouvement

2007-06-11T00:50:00.001-07:00

Festival at Chaumont-sur-Loire

Totally awesome, probably one of the coolest things I’ve ever been to. 26 new gardens were made as a result of a competition, and ideas we have seen in studio to be ‘wacky’ were realized. This to me proves something I’ve found to be a major turnoff in design school. Kyle, Conor, and my projects were always different, and were often deemed to be ‘unfit’ for the real world, especially by practitioners (not by studio professors). I understand that I went to a festival based on a competition, however, these things were real, not just drawings, and everyone loved it. So why the hell don’t we do this type of work, in the ‘real’ world? It gets pushed aside so easily, and opportunity for unique experience is lost. I felt such a range of experience there, and I was nearly in tears the first go around from a rush of joy (is it ok to say that word?), it was incredible.

http://chaumont-jardins.com

I stayed in a lovely bed & breakfast on the banks of the Loire River, and had a host who was the nicest woman. She talked to me quite a bit about how much she liked the festival every year, and her guests too. During breakfast the second day, we talked more about it; I’ve decided that every minute I ever spent learning French has proved to be more than worth it. Being able to talk with her opened me up to a local’s perspective, and it’s a nice feeling conversing in a foreign language. By no means am I fluent, but I can hold a decent conversation now. I think I’ve found a new extremely strong interest in that I’d like to speak several languages, hopefully in the near future.

Bed & Breakfast

Chaumont-sur-Loire

Anyhow, here are some of my favorites (not all 26 were great, a few were kind of lame)

I dont have a picture of the description of this first one, but it is titled 'Du vent dans les voiles' and here is the english description off the website:
Did you ever dream that the sheets out drying in the garden, suddenly puffed up by the wind, would one day turn into sails and carry you up and away to enchanted lands? This simple movement of laundry in the wind inspired the creation of this garden.
Come rest and be rocked, cradled in these great swinging, swaying swaths of elastic cloth. The fabric acts as a seat, a bed, a trampoline or a swing, constantly reshaped. Just a push with your feet and you’re floating over an rural ocean of undulating grass, whisked away to new horizons…
The takeoff and the sweeping of the sails, echo the swish of the grass… Ah, to be in movement in the garden, to be the movement of the garden!

This one was a super cool idea, but it was way too hard to move anything. The wheels were locked in one direction, and the panels barely could slide at all. If better mechanics had been worked out, this one would have been lots of fun.

I hope that at least one of you gets to go to this festival someday. If anyone wants, I can give the name & number of the b&b, I had a view of the Loire river and the castle every day. And it was pretty cheap, the breakfast was good as well.

Conference at Centre Pompidou : Gilles Clément

2007-06-11T00:47:00.000-07:00

Titled Histoire des Trente, le parc André Citroën, Gilles Clément spoke this time of his work, and only briefly touched on his current political activity. I will list a few of his main points, simply

• The idea of a garden passes beyond the garden itself
• He proposed to move forward with the idea of Jardin Planétaire, with the idea that the world is itself a garden, and we need to realize and understand its different parts; in order to move in the right direction.
• The idea of diversity in the garden is what most strongly interests him. He showed pictures of plantation forests juxtaposed with places of vegetated diversity.
• The ‘third landscape’ is the space where we will see the future in what will pass, what plants are now natural.

He went on to describe his process of building his house and garden in la Creuse. He lived in a tent of sorts for two years while he found materials and constructed his house. It is made nearly entirely by him and students, with the help of local craftspeople on the areas he didn’t know how to do. He begun the idea of jardin en mouvement there, in his personal garden.

He continued with speaking on parc André Citroën itself. He showed pictures of gardeners with lawnmowers, and explained that in this garden, they are quite happy, since they are designing as they go. There are definite choices to be made, which separates this from the third landscape, which is not the same is third nature (Third nature being a garden, tended by humans) He talked about his inspirations from his various tours of the world. He apparently spent some time living in many different places, and got to know many cultures.

He spent the majority of the time talking about his idea of “Tiers paysage”. I am in the midst of reading his “Manifeste du Tiers paysage”, which I picked up at the conference. I will make a post of that soon…

His closing remarks were that we must protect the Tiers paysage, from the spaces adjacent to roadways to post industrial lands, in order learn from nature on natural terms. The tiers paysage holds the keys to understanding nature now.

Parc André Citroën

2007-06-11T00:29:00.000-07:00

In my opinion, the best park in Paris. I came here a number of times, as it happened it was very close to where I stayed for the first week. Thanks again Caroline for the hospitality and showing me around town. Thanks Thomas for letting me stay for a few days too. Anyhow, here are some photos:

Parc André Citroën - a contemporary park between nature and artifice.

The moat was dry when I was there, so kids were running down and through it. There are only two main access points to the lawn (a third for the hot air balloon), however when I was there, one could come and go as they pleased.

Finally, the garden in movement. This space was so excellent to me, the vegetated diversity was amazing, and plants I grew up believing as weeds were allowed to flower and become huge. The range of textures and colors there is fascinating. Simply the shades of green, from the dark bamboo plants to the light green lawn, but also the array of flowering plants was quite beautiful. Part of why I think this was so successful was its location. I feel there is so much room for this kind of design in the city, however it couldn't have been the whole park. André Citroën is very large, and it has richness of diversity that one can really appreciate. If the whole of it were the jardin en mouvenent, it would not be nearly the park it is.

Make out city.

Jardins Demain

2007-06-11T00:12:00.000-07:00

An exposition at the Hôtel de Ville in Paris. Gardens were designed to permit the visitor to discover different themes & evolutions dealing with Parisian gardens The gardens occupied the plaza in front of the Hotel, with more one than 110,000 products coming from the greenhouses of the city. A divided garden, an educational garden and an urban fallow land (friche) illustrated the recent evolution of a notion of nature in the city and the necessity of biodiversity. Inside the building, an exposition showed recent projects of gardens and parks, the new orientations, and the evolution of the place of the nature in the city. Photos, filmed testimonies and interactive pictures all were part of the expo. I spent an afternoon, and later in the week came back again. It was excellent. I will translate these boards when I get more time…

taste

I don't know what these guys were doing, but it looked like a karate class warm up, they were performing some high kicks, just like our dancer friends.

Each Parisien should have access to a garden less than 500 metres from their residence.

Some questions and answers from the film showcasing interviews in Paris on the subject of le jardin idéal (ideal garden)

• What is for you the ideal garden in the city?
A poetic garden, open to all
Some flowers, lawn, part unmaintained
A place where one can go to think and change their ideas
• What represents for you nature in the city?
I think that nature doesn’t like the city
Nature crosses over the city, through gardens, plants that grow up walls and those that come up in sidewalk cracks
I would like to have nature everywhere in the city
• What for you is the most important mission for nature in the city?
To have a mix of cultured and some areas that have liberty

La rue est à nous...tous!

2007-06-10T14:42:00.000-07:00

Exhibition at the École d'architecture de Paris-Val-de-Seine. The exhibition showcased various open space/streetworks projects all over the world, including Federation Square in Melbourne, Australia – which provided a good memory for me – But also there were many boards which raised fairly obvious questions, and offered very few answers. How do we go about sharing the road, how can pedestrians be safe, or how do we move forward with developing new technologies of moving people, were all questions raised. For me, the exhibition was interesting, however, these are all questions we are well aware of as architects, and I left feeling roughly the same about the ideas.

City Life, A video game that was shown in movie form in order to explain its function. This was totally fascinating to me, people in the game are separated into social classes, and have a corresponding dress code. Its absolutely amazing to watch a city being built on the computer, sped up through the use of film effects. I guess this game is real, I’m not totally sure, but it provides for an interesting reflection on our society.

Poor photo, however, this room was super amazing, four walls all going with projections of streets at the same time. Not necessarily the same street, however there were moments of synchronization throughout. The room was huge, with projections on the ground as well. Sounds would come out of speakers in the corner to correspond with or not correspond with an image on one of the 5 walls. I hope this makes sense, because it totally rocked.

Musée du Quai Branly

2007-06-10T12:32:00.000-07:00

Building by Jean Nouvel, Gardens by Gilles Clément, and green façade by Patrick Blanc. I walked by this several times, and I quite like the green façade. If you walk close enough to the wall, water drops fall from above, it is very much alive. Everyone stops to look at it, and many step back on the street to get a better view. Most people touch it with ease, as if it were going to bite back. There are water marks on the pavement and it is noticibly cooler the closer you get to the wall. It provides for a strong juxtaposition with the neighbouring building, and with the rest of the museum. I found the museum itself to be a bit star trekky, especially on the inside. The passage up to the main level is pretty cool though, and I enjoyed the exhibits, particularly those from New Zealand. The gardens are very rich in diversity, and are contrasted with these light poles, it’s a shame I don’t have a photo of the nighttime. The night lighting is quite beautiful, you can see it here. Photo at night & article Anyhow, the gardens are not examples of his jardin en mouvement, however it showcases plant diversity very well. Here's a link for the museum. Musée du Quai Branly

Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain

2007-06-10T12:19:00.000-07:00

It was closed, this is as far as I got in…Its a shame because I really wanted to go inside, the building is quite impressive from the street. I went during business hours, but they were doing remodeling. I think, the security guard wasn't too chatty, but he let me know very quickly that it was in fact closed.

Parc de la Villette

2007-06-10T12:02:00.000-07:00

Part of the park was closed, however we spent a part of the afternoon exploring it, as well as the adjacent Cité des sciences and Cité des arts. Perhaps I built it up in my head before going, but to me it seemed not terribly impressive. I don’t know, I liked it and I didn’t. It’s ok to say that. I just thought the elements weren’t terribly successful, and effort could have been put somewhere else to make a stronger design. Its bold, yet weak in a way, or at least to me. Either way, it is well used, with the adjacent cultural centres.

A page of the cultural events going on at la Villette

Versailles

2007-06-10T11:33:00.000-07:00

After the visit to the architecture & landscape schools of Versailles, I spent the rest of the day walking through the gardens & chateau of Versailles. The scale is seemingly impossible, with views that go off into forever. This is contrasted by the bosquets, where one is surprised at the intimate scale and enclosed nature of these spaces.

The chateau is so much more beyond what I had expected. I don’t know how to really describe it, but it seemed to overwhelm me to some degree. Each room you go into is so incredibly ornate that it made me wonder how this ever came to pass. I don’t quite understand how something like this chateau and garden would be constructed today, but to imagine it built during the time it was is baffling.

École nationale supérieure du paysage de Versailles

2007-06-10T10:12:00.001-07:00

I went to Versailles to go to a class in the school of Architecture with Caroline. We sat in on a class about film and society, which was interesting, but unfortunately I hadn’t seen the four films that they were discussing. The professor was Swiss, which was nice, he spoke slowly and I could easily understand. After, we went to the school of landscape architecture, and made a tour of the gardens there. Each landscape student gets assigned a small plot, and it looks like make experiments or do whatever they want to. Cool idea if you ask me.

Palais Royal

2007-06-10T09:58:00.000-07:00

I really enjoyed this space, its just north of the Louvre, and there were a few installations there as well which were sort of interesting, but also sort of not…However, the space is well used, and proved to be a great place for a snack and a rest.

Place Furstenberg

2007-06-10T09:51:00.000-07:00

A lovely small square close to St. Germain des Prés. This is the site of the pink plastic installation by the group Peripheriques that our Landscape since 2000 class looked at. See this picture of the Installation Thank you David for the list of Parisien sites; I enjoyed many tasty treats and sites such as this I would have never known about otherwise.

Metro

2007-06-10T09:44:00.000-07:00

Promenade Plantée

2007-06-10T09:12:00.000-07:00

Former railway turned public open space. These first few photos are from the beginning, near the Bastille, where it is below grade. It then leads through a park called the Jardin de Reuilly, where a reggae band was playing, we all watched from the bridge. I thought the promenade was totally cool, especially during this part of below grade. It felt like you were in some sort of murky, humid world that was of another place. The part after the park, where it is elevated, is nice as well, it has a wide variety of plantings, but it is quite ornamental, which detracted a bit for me the character of the railway line. It was heavily used, and I think overall quite a remarkable space, especially when you consider the entire journey. It is very rich, you traverse many different spaces and plantings and textures.

Jardin de Reuilly

Frédéric Borel

2007-06-10T09:06:00.000-07:00

Big time French architect who was giving a tour to the class of Brazilian and French students. We toured his building École d'architecture de Paris-Val-de-Seine. He is a super nice guy, and in fact Caroline is now working with him.

La Basilique du Sacré Coeur de Montmartre

2007-06-10T08:53:00.000-07:00

Gorgeous cathedral, I went once during the week, and again on a Sunday night. During the night visit, I sat and enjoyed nuns singing; the resonance of the building is amazing. After, I sat with a mix of Brazilian and French architecture students and drank wine and ate cheese on the steps leading up to the church as night fell. There was a cheesy guitar player playing the top ten best-known American songs, which of course the tourists were singing along. Anyhow, it was great to get to know these other students. They were part of an exchange program where they worked with French students. Earlier, the French went to Brazil for some time to explore the contemporary architecture as well as to get to know the culture of Rio de Janeiro. Now the Brazilians came here to do the same. They were great fun.

Louvre

2007-06-10T08:48:00.000-07:00

I spent an afternoon wandering around the Louvre, but one easily spend a week there, its immense. Highlights were the Code of Hammarubi, and I got to see the Mona Lisa (La Joconde) in person. There are about six people designed to intercept potential photo takers, which was kind of hilarious to watch. The painting was so incredibly captivating for me, much more so than I had expected.

Now some photos from the Tuiliries, it was kind of a rainy day, so not many good photos, however the gardens looked wonderful, due to a recent rennovation.

Jardin des Plantes

2007-06-10T08:37:00.000-07:00

Just next to the Gare d’Austerlitz, the Jardin des Plantes is an extremely well used public space in Paris, everytime I went there, there were heaps of people. It is also near other things, but this is how I got to know Paris, by where the metro stations were. I went on a day where it decided to downpour, so I went again later in the week. There is a part of the park that is showcasing plants of Paris and the friche which is off limits to the public. It is explained by signs on the fences that it is showcasing the state of nature in progressive stages in the 'friche'. But it is fenced in…And there is only one guided tour on Saturdays from 3pm to 430pm. I was late, but anyhow, these guided tours of Parisian parks are kind of lame, it is an old guy/gal who explains plants to other old guys and gals. As I don’t really know names of plants in English, let alone French, these kinds of things aren’t really for me. Anyhow, cool idea, but let the public in, we are a huge part of nature now.

Jardin du Luxembourg

2007-06-10T08:22:00.000-07:00

I really enjoyed this park, even though it was raining. There was a shelter where I took shelter for a while, and then continued along my way. During my time there, there was an exhibit, ‘Femme y es-tu?’ in which many sculptures in the park and trees were subjected to some sort of change. Personally, I thought this was interesting, and a total surprise, that this could happen. Historic sculptures were dressed up and had things touching them. I would have expected them to be ‘off limits’, but were rather fair game, although I’m sure the artists were watched very carefully and probably had strict guidelines to follow.

Road medians in the 13th

2007-06-09T09:54:00.001-07:00

There are many construction projects going on in the 13th right now, primarily apartment buildings. It is a quite cold space, without the charm of Paris. I found these plantings in the centre of the road to be interesting. I’m sure once things settle down these ‘weeds’ will be surely gone.

Bibliothèque François Mitterrand

2007-06-09T09:46:00.000-07:00

In the 13th arrondissement, where there is heaps of new construction going on. It is fairly windy there, hence the trees in cages. In fact, that is the reason for their current state, which was something that happened after realizing the project.

Centre Pompidou

2007-06-09T09:41:00.001-07:00

Opened in 1977, designed by architects Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers, the centre Pompidou is amazing. I spent half a day there, wandering through exhibits and admiring the building.

An exhibit on inflatables, which reminded me of a project I did for sophomore studio. I watched some super sweet movies there, on construction and various art exhibits from that time. I think inflated things are pretty cool.

Le Cimetière du Père Lachaise

2007-06-09T09:30:00.000-07:00

The grave of Oscar Wilde

Edith Piaf

Jim Morrison

la Tour Eiffel

2007-06-09T09:07:00.000-07:00

Cathédrale Notre Dame de Paris

2007-06-09T09:04:00.000-07:00

Jardin botanique, Bordeaux

2007-06-09T07:51:00.001-07:00

There are in fact two jardin botaniques in Bordeaux. I went to the first one the first day I was in Bordeaux, but later that week, I visited the one designed by Catherine Mosbach. Thank you Céline for giving me a place to stay those 4 days. The jardin botanique was an interesting place, I was surprised at its size, I was somehow under the impression that it was much larger, but in fact it is relatively small. However, it is an excellent park, with a range of spaces and uses. While I was there, there was a student field trip of some sort, and many kids were on a scavenger hunt for names of plants. There is a school nearby, which could explain why there were so many students there. I found it to be excellent, however, much of it is off limits to the public, which I don’t really understand. There are these areas in the centre of the park, where she has exposed soils (see picture) and installed plants from the various habitats. There are signs posted to not go up into it, and it would be pretty hard for some people to get up there anyways. While I think this is a good idea, what would be better, is to take these soils from all over France, and let it be, with the intention of seeing what nature does today. And by all means make a way so people can walk and be amongst it, since we are very much a part of nature now, and it would more useful if it was accessible.

Here are some photos:

The signs telling you to not walk on the metal paths are very hard to read, and they aren't really successful, given that people were walking out amongst the plants anyways. It isn't terribly dangerous either, the water is shallow, so I think these signs are a bit silly.

Area on the edge of the park, designed to be representative of the urban fringe.

I thought this was pretty cool, there were different trellis structures standing in space, with a corresponding plant beginning to climb its way up. Each plant was in a different stage of maturity.

Different islands corresponding to different habitats, it was interesting, the soils were exposed, and it gave a new perspective of plants. You are always looking up, its kind of annoying in a way, but the user is therefore involved in moving a bit, which I find to be a good thing. I just wish there was a way to get up in there, and be amongst the plants.

For your security and to preserve the environment, access is not permitted....Unfortunate if you ask me

This was closed during my visit, but is also part of the park, as a greenhouse.

la Dune du Pyla

2007-06-04T08:53:00.000-07:00

Totally fascinating, on the non-windward side of the dune, miniature river valleys and gorges have been created. They are delicate, absolutely beautiful manifestations of erosion. I have a film that I will try to get up here soon.

Pyrénées

2007-06-04T08:30:00.000-07:00

After going to Toulouse, Pau, Yvan and I went to his house in the Pyrénées, in the village of Feas. I enjoyed wonderful hospitality, and excellent food, for which I am very thankful. Yvan and I hiked up into the mountains and into Spain, we went near the Pic d'Anie. After, we drove to Isaba, Spain, and had some ice cream.

la mer de nuages

Chateau de Pau

2007-06-04T08:15:00.000-07:00

At the Chateau de Pau, there is a small garden that is strangely juxtaposed with a wall of stone where plants are growing freely. I don't know if this was the intent, but it provides for an interesting contrast, and a fascinating manifestation of plant performance.

Field of Coquelicots, la Creuse

2007-06-04T08:12:00.000-07:00

Gilles Clément

2007-06-04T07:16:00.000-07:00

Gilles Clément lives in a house in la Creuse that he constructed completely himself. He has a large property, where he observes his various experiments and gardens. The tour consisted of myself, Yvan, and two other people who were at the conference. He is an incredibly nice and thoughtful person, and welcomes people to his home often. For the tour and the conference, everyone spoke in French, so I will do my best to translate.

This is an area where M. Clément dug up the existing soil, to expose the bedrock. He allowed some soil to remain, and then left it be. The purpose was to see what plants would settle in there, and which ones would thrive naturally.

A tree that tipped over during a storm. He left it there, to see what would happen, and another shoot came up from the existing trunk. There are several others on the property that have done the same. Rather than removing fallen trees, he has allowed nature to run its course, and produce something quite remarkable.

He has a prairie where the soils are quite different, producing naturally different vegetation.

He made a loft, where he can look out over some of his property, and this is where we sat for a talk. The other guests posed questions regarding his strong political stance, similar to the conference. Rather than me explain his political views, please visit his website. http://www.gillesclement.com After this, I asked him about the jardin en mouvement, and its management principles. He explained that the intent is for the gardener to be the one who follows, not leads, in the garden. This promotes a richer understanding of natural processes with regards to nature in its context of today, here and now. I also asked him about the friche , where post industrial and urban lands are left, and what we can do to move forward with ideas of the jardin en mouvement with regards to these spaces. His answer was to follow what is happening now, that there is an incredible amount of biodiversity at places like this. So the landscape architect goes with the intention of following while creating, rather than dominating. I find this to be of interest, particularly in the realm of management. If we understand what happens naturally, now, then we wont have to have ridiculous management practices to keep landscapes in a static manner.

I found him to be a very nice and thoughtful person, who took time to reflect and consider points of view. His personality seems to come through very well through the means of his gardens and experiments. He has an incredibly rich knowledge of horticulture and biology, and prefers to actually make things, rather than making drawings of things.

Conference, la Creuse

2007-06-04T07:04:00.000-07:00

Une journée des plantes, where a small tent was set up for Gilles Clément to speak. It was more of a place where people could buy various plants and items crafted in the region. M. Clément spoke for around 30 minutes, and it was almost completely political. He left his job with the government after the recent elections in France. He is totally disgusted by the new changes Sarkozy is favouring. For further reading, go to his website, http://www.gillesclement.com Most interesting, he said France will lose its identity, and become just another star in the American flag. He spoke about his ideas of le jardin Planétaire, and how the future looks, with particular regard to the change in government. I am going to another conference soon, this time in Paris at the centre Pompidou. After the talk, he opened it up to questions, it seemed most people were very much agreeing with him, but wanted to know what they could actually do. Later, my friend Yvan and I went to him, and he invited us to go to his house for a tour of his experiments and to talk a little.

la Creuse

2007-06-04T06:58:00.000-07:00

I spent the first day in France looking for my bags, I owe many thanks to Caroline for helping me and giving me a place to stay. After we found my bags, I went south to La Creuse, to go to a conference and visit with Gilles Clément. Here are a few photos of La Creuse (region) and La Souterraine (village).