From ambigious borderscapes to pluralism

Abstract

This research uses the notion of ‘pluralism’ as an alternative starting point for landscape architectural design by focusing on aspects of time and interactivity as opposed to strategies of re-configuration of both form and agency of the landscape. It explores the role of design in a rural landscape characterized by land ownership through the concept of ‘borderscapes’ as a political vacuum and area for minor interventions. The site of interest is located at the Hunze stream valley in the province of Drenthe, the Netherlands. The water conditions since pre-historical times have formed this territory through high and low plateaus, different soil types and dry or wet vegetation types. Located at a geomorphologically rich location but also vulnerable to land reclamation, the landscape of the Hunze valley has been influenced by ecological degradation. This research examines the spatial conditions that result from years of implemented policies and the effects on everyday experiences of nature. The Hunze stream valley has often been approached as a north-south water system that runs from highlands to lowlands, however this project depicts the area as an east-west system of material conditions and human inhabitation. Concluding that the territory is now characterized by separation (zoning of nature and culture), displacement of problem areas (soil movements), and the negligence of resource proximity. The east-west routing is used as a starting point for creating a new representation of site and experience on three traverses: the source, the crossing and the community.