X-LArch IV
9th and 10th November 2012
LANDSCAPE 100
How to design new landscapes?
Workshop. Aim of the half-day workshop is to reflect approaches to designing new landscapes, using Viennese sites as an example. It addresses practitioners, scholars and master students in the field of landscape architecture, landscape history as well as heritage, and cultural and art history. The conference lecturers will head two landscape laboratories with a maximum of 15 persons each. Each lab will be centered around a specific site. While both of them are located at the riverfront, each is embedded in a very distinct contextual environment and city fabric. One is a graveyard for anonymous drowned bodies of the Danube, the so-called Friedhof der Namenlosen at the very city limit, where questions of landscape context may play a role in the design process. The other site is a linear park (Wettsteinpark) in the city center being one of the first landscape architectural developments on the riverside of the Danube Canal of the late 1920s, a site which now revolves around questions of functionality and commercialisation in the broader context of recent developments along Donaukanal. We have teamed up practicing landscape architects with landscape history theorists as to provide a workshop environment that feeds off both practical and theoretical knowledge. Michael van Gessel and Ulrike Krippner will work on Wettsteinpark, Dorothée Imbert and Georges Descombes on Friedhof der Namenlosen. Diana Balmori will join the workshops for a closing discussion. Within the workshop participants should address the sites’ specific history and challenges and also
- locate their own stance in the actual Landscape Architecture discourse
- critically reflect upon their own positions
- refine their design vocabulary, and
- broaden their range of analytical and design skills.
Peparatory Work. Prior to the workshop, participants have to hand in a rough concept or a programmatic statement for developing the site. Both the sketch and the statement shall outline the approach(es) and strategies to design or intervention the participant is contemplating when addressing the sites. Participants are encouraged to pose questions related to the site in their statements, rather than comprising ready-made solutions. The concepts shall consist of one to three sketches (jpg format), the text should be between 300 to 500 words (pdf format). The language is English. Submission deadline for these first statements and questions is 28st October, 2012. Workshop Contents. During the two landscape laboratories on 10th November 2012, we discuss the rough concepts, questions and statements handed in before and define strategies to interpret and further develop the site. We examine how and to what extent the site’s history and status quo influence design decisions. Beside the site’s requirements, we reflect the position we take while designing landscapes and detect the references of our design. In a studio atmosphere, we will come up with several design concepts for the specific site. The heads of the workshop direct an intense discourse on the various design approaches and encourage a broad reflection of the participants’ positions. Staff members document the process and results. The ILA intends to publish this documentation in a small booklet. Staff members provide participants with information and documents as well as taking care of participants’ well being during the workshop.
Aims for (re) designing the sites. Find suitable answers for a contemporary, yet long lasting design and/or treatment of the sites. Make your approach visible through drawings, skteches, diagrams, text.
Find the history and existing situation in the documentations of the sites.
Specific challenges:
Wettsteinpark: Improve the park's appearance and create a location to meet actual requirements, i.e. recreation along the linear landscape of the Danube Chanel as well as urban recreation for the surrounding urban neighbourhood. Friedhof der Namenlosen: Treat the site as an entry to the river landscape strechting east to Slovakia. Look for an answr how/if the two parts of the cemetery should be commemorated and integrated in the landscape. Make an area for recreation in the spatial context between industrial site and landscape.
Material & Field trip. After their accepted application, participants will be provided with information on the site’s history, requirements and future challenges. This material will be sent after the registration deadline (20th October). An individual field trip in advance is advantageous, but – especially for those coming from abroad – not a prerequiste. We offer guided fieldtrips to each of the sites on Friday morning, 9th November, 2012, for which participants are asked to register by 5th November through e-mailing eva.schwab@boku.ac.at. Workshop Schedule
9:00 - 10:30
Discussion: After a short welcome and introduction to the workshop’s programme, participants and lecturers discuss the programmatic statements and concepts, in addition to defining strategies for further development. 10:30 - 13:30
Conceptual Work: In a studio atmosphere, participants work on design concepts.
13:30 till open end
Conclusion and Buffet: In a plenary meeting of both groups, the heads of the workshops give short concluding statements. During a small lunch-buffet, participants have the opportunity for an informal exchange of ideas. The ILA intends to show a documentary of the workshops in a video presentation. Jan 17 2012 - Feb 11 2013 The Workshop findings will be exhibited at the GB*20 (the "Gebietsbetreuung" is the urban renewal civic service center of the city administration) to feed back the results to the city and make them accessible to the local residents. Information and Registration
If you have further questions or want to register for our event, please e-mail our Conference Manager Eva Schwab and refer to the main page for bank details. Registration deadline for the workshop is 20th October 2012. Registration deadline for the fieldtrip is 5th November 2012. Participation in the two workshops is limited to 30 people (15 in each workshop). One third of the contingent is available to advanced master students. Students register with portfolio and personal statement. Please note: while we do our best to accommodate the wishes of participants regarding their workshop groups, this cannot be guaranteed. Should you not find yourself in the team you desired, we will do our best to find a solution.