German Cityscape @ Seoul National University

The international travelling exhibition presents a broad spectrum of themes in landscape architecture. It focuses on areas of the profession poised to gain international importance, illustrating the tasks and techniques of landscape design in the post-industrial age.

The exhibition provides a wealth of knowledge about landscape architecture and features examples from Germany’s North Rhine-Westphalia.

An international travelling exhibition on the working fields of landscape architecture by the Chamber of Architects of North Rhine-Westphalia with the support of the Ministry for Building and Transport of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia.

Opening Lecture NatureTecture: Sustainable Development of the Cityscape, Prof. Elizabeth Sikiaridi, 2 December 2011
Exhibition NatureTecture @ Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Seoul National University, 2-9 December 2011

NatureTecture

Landscape Architecture

Most green spaces in North Rhine-Westphalia did not crop up naturally. They are rather the product of targeted landscape architecture. As our environment, economy and society have changed, so too has the way we perceive and design landscape. The new exhibition “naturetecture / naturtektur” by the Chamber of Architects of North Rhine-Westphalia shows how our landscape has developed in the past and addresses the challenges faced by landscape architects today. The exhibition opens on 10 Febru- ary 2010 at 6:00 pm in Düsseldorf’s House of Architects (Zollhof 1, 40221 Düsseldorf, Germany).

Landscape today is a rare and fragile commodity that has grown progressively more important for so- ciety, environment and economy. The bilingual “naturetecture / naturtektur” focuses on landscape as the very medium of landscape architecture, presenting its long tradition in North Rhine-Westphalia along with the architectural fields set to gain in international importance over the coming years. “The design of landscape shapes cities and communities in a fundamental way,” emphasizes Harmut Miksch, the president of the Chamber of Architects of North Rhine-Westphalia. “It is a key factor in [our state’s] building culture.” In this spirit, the exhibition presents landscape architecture in its social con- text as well as in its interrelation with other fields of work.

The exhibition is devoted to the tasks and tools of improving landscape in the post-industrial age rather than to individual projects and personalities. It throws new light on how we perceive landscape, and it identifies North Rhine-Westphalia as a hotspot of landscape architecture.

The exhibition spans thirteen thematic areas illustrating the diversity of challenges that confront land- scape architecture today, especially in densely populated regions such as North Rhine-Westphalia. These challenges include the renovation of historical parks and landscapes, the renaturalisation of industrial and mining areas, the planning of agricultural land, and the design of urban open spaces, from community gardens to areas of rest and relaxation. The exhibition uses innovative examples to discuss subjects important for the future, such as the sustainable use of water and the creation of “en- ergy landscapes” for the cultivation of renewable resources. Each theme is introduced with high-quality images taken by the photographers Julian Roeder and Johannes Schwartz.

The curators of “naturetecture / naturtektur” are Professor Elizabeth Sikiaridi and Professor Frans Vogelaar. The exhibition was funded by the Ministry for Building and Transport of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia as part of the state initiative StadtBauKultur NRW. The exhibition is scheduled to begin an international tour after the show in Düsseldorf.

On 10 February 2010 an opening reception will take place at the Haus der Architekten (House of Architects).

Program

Speaches

Congratulatory Speech 1: SNU Vice-President Park Myung Jin
Congratulatory Speech 2: Hans-Ulrich Seidt, German Ambassador at Korea
Opening Address: Lee Do Won, Dean of SNU GSES

Lecture

Prof. Elizabeth Sikiaridi, Hybrid Space Lab
NatureTecture: Sustainable Development of the Cityscape
15.00-16.00, 2 December 2011

Venue

Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Seoul National University

Exhibition

10.00-17.00, 2-9 December 2011

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