Little over a year ago I came across this book called
environ(ne)ment : approaches for tomorrow
(on the teories and appoaches of Gilles Clément and Philippe Rahm)
There is this quote of Gilles Clément in the book that I really liked and that I think in a way summes up the problem for the future; understanding our role:
The role of humans
in the environment
is to understand
how it functions,
and to promote
its continued functioning.
Since man is just one spieces
among the great diversity
of species in nature,
he cannot hope
to intervene
and to exploit
this diversity
without jeopardising
the mechanisms
of interaction
among
the many forms
of life on the planet.
Eco-economics and "natural capital"
transitional spaces
undeveloped spaces
officially preserved places
"the wise gardener"
Clément tells the story of the wise gardener who attentively observes every aspect of the garden, from plants to animals, from wind to clouds, on the strengt of his belife that "observation is the ideal mode of gardening for tomorrow". Given his capacity to observe and to understand the organisational complexity of nature, as well as to desipher the subtle relations between living things, Cléments wise gardener is able to engage nature`s own evolutionary processes and to guide its creative forces.(Giovanna Borasi; Between Nature and Environment: "In truth, man is hard to accommodate")
How will Malmø be "gardened" in the future?
Will the inhabitants want to take care of all its elements and develope them,
restore the ones that is in trouble, nurture the ones that is not blooming etc.
How can they see and discover all of their components in this middle-european city?
Can it be seen as a city within the borders of the german "Garten", an enclosured space? Or is the borders more unclear, and in that case how can they/we/us work out ways to work with that situation?
Also; how does one deside what matters more, and how will one learn about all these ingredients?
16 September 2009
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1 comment:
Nice, or should we say brilliant, of you to introduce Gilles Clément to our studio. Our bookshelves contains some of his books. In the magazine Scape 2007/2 (which also contains an intervieu with D&U) it is an interesting intervieu by Loretta Coen with Gilles Clément titled “The Planetary Gardener”.
You ask: How does decide what matters more, and how will one learn about all this ingredients. In the Scape text Cléments attitude is described in this way:
“He bases his position on the work of sustained observation, patient experimentation, a knowledge fed by all sorts of cross-disciplinary relationships. This complement the knowledge he acquired during his constant travels – to which Algeria, which he saw as a child, South Africa which he saw as an adolescent, and Nicaragua as a development aid volunteer, constituted the prologue. His attitude is the opposite of that of a specialist”.
Gilles Clement notion “The Third Landscape” may contain some answers to your question – check it out. At Alnarp on Thursday you will encounter “all sorts of cross-disciplinary relationships” that can enlighten your questions.
Your link to the Malmö Street Project reflects on what you can refer to as “sustained observation”.
KE+K
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