This is not a park... fabricating a template for Berlin wilderness

View Original

Add To Collection Add to Collection

View Original

Add To Collection Add to Collection

View Original

Add To Collection Add to Collection

View Original

Add To Collection Add to Collection

This is not a park... fabricating a template for Berlin wilderness

Firm

Type

Landscape + Planning › Public Park

BUDGET

$10M - 50M

Taking advantage of a largely unbuilt 250 acre site, this radical proposal for environmental restoration in the heart of Berlin anticipates a long-term evolution of space into an ecologically productive natural habitat. It suggests a 50-year strategy for boldly applying broad ecological and regional concerns to a specific urban setting. The project juxtaposes voyeuristic relationships of nature to the dense underground infrastructure of the city, catalyzing the redevelopment of Berlin’s Hauptbahnhof. Specific habitats of flora and fauna cultivate, evolve and connect Berlin’s existing peripheral green belt to the site. At the same time, the site becomes the epicenter of an ecological restoration, a new wilderness area, where ecology physically and symbolically unifies the metropolis. This new wilderness consumes: overgrown rail yards and hardscapes; fabricates topography, hydrology and biotopes; camouflages buildings with forests, infrastructure with grass and earth; carpets tunnels with sod; shelters threatened flora and fauna; restores managed forests into wilderness; networks nature. NOA competition awarded the Japan Institute of Architects Prize by the Union Internationale Des Architectes.