Operative wetland
S. Yun (TU Delft - Architecture and the Built Environment)
M.G.H. Schoonderbeek – Mentor (TU Delft - Architecture and the Built Environment)
F. Geerts – Mentor (TU Delft - Architecture and the Built Environment)
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Abstract
This research investigates the Hortillonnages of Amiens, a protected wetland landscape shaped by historical peat extraction and irrigated agriculture. Although now recognized as a natural wetland, its spatial structure and water systems are largely the result of past productive activities that continue to influence the landscape.
The study argues that the Hortillonnages should not be understood as a static preserved environment, but as a dynamic spatial system shaped by post-extraction and post-agricultural conditions. While the original productive uses have disappeared, their material and spatial effects still determine interactions between land, water, and human activity.
Through mapping and spatial analysis, the research examines how these inherited structures continue to organize contemporary patterns of use and management. The project highlights the importance of focusing on ongoing processes rather than fixed end states, and explores how architecture can engage with landscapes that persist through continuous adaptation and change.
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