The exhibition 'Landscape as Cult. A Changing View on Our Nature' puts the people/landscape and culture/nature relationships into sharp focus. The stage for our actions us has always been the landscape around us, but have we almost outgrown this podium? Given the increasing awareness of our disastrous treatment of nature, are we still able – or willing – to feel connected to it? Or are we more inclined to attract the landscape towards us, or even to spend more time in nature?
Is the Oostvaardersplassen nature reserve a realistic representation of a typically Dutch landscape? How 'Romantic' is our contemporary image of nature? Are we still self-reliant? Can technology and landscape architecture help us to reverse environmental decline?
This exhibition pits the Romantic experience of nature against the raw reality of cultivation. Landscape architecture is traditionally a historical analysis: a spatial design that strikes the right balance between ecology, biodiversity and culture. But what happens when instead of tackling the landscape horizontally you construct it vertically, from archaeology to satellite? What layers does it reveal and what meanings do we find embedded in the nature around us?
We examine our stewardship of planet Earth by looking at some notable figures who have changed our thinking forever, such as Eugene Dubois and Ian McHarg; by reflecting on the dying coral reefs as presented in 'Teatro Della Terra Alienata' (Theatre of The Alienated Land), the prize-winning Australian pavilion at the Milan Architecture Triennale; and by critically reflecting on our societal image of nature.
Featuring:
Jean-Baptiste Castel | Benjamin Earl | Fabrique & Q42 | Tracy Fullerton | Grandeza + Bajeza (Amaia Sanchez-Velasco, Jorge Valiente Oriol, Gonzal Valiente &Miguel Rodriguez-Casellas, University of Technology Sydney) | Lodovica Guarnieri & Gabriela Baka | Pascal Leboucq & Nieuwe Helden | Arjen de Leeuw | LOLA Landscape Architects & Piet Oudolf & Deltavormgroep | Next Architects & H+N+S Landscape Architects | Giacomo Nanni & Julian Peschel | RAAAF | Dirk Sijmons | Studio Marco Vermeulen | WEST8
Curator: Saskia van Stein
Co-curator: Remco Beckers
Graphic identity: Nina van Tuikwerd
Mr. Wilfred Alblas, director at the Limburgs Landschap Foundation, will open the exhibition on Thursday, 28 November at 17:30.
Opening: Thursday, November 28, 17.00 – 19.00
Free admission during the opening
Exhibition dates: Thursday 28 November to Sunday 3 May 2020
Admission: €5.00 regular; €3.00 students; free with valid museum card
Location: Bureau Europa, platform for architecture and design
Landscape as Cult, the opening
Landscape as Cult, the exhibition
Related Publications
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Landscape as Cult
Saskia van Stein & Remco BeckersA changing view on our nature
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