Wasteland Sydney is happy to announce a new project: Wasteland Sydney Satellites: Wasteland Satellite Beaconsfield As mentioned earlier http://wasteland-twinning.net/blog/fenced-off/ the Wasteland in Surry Hills will be inaccessible for the next two years. In order to reflect on the fast changeing cityscape of Sydney I have nominated the first sibling wasteland to the Albion St land. The first wasteland satellite is in the tiny inner-city suburb of Beaconsfield. It is located ... more »
Culture between Public and Digital Spheres
Reclaiming public space is one of the linking elements of all citizens’ movements in the recent past – on the streets from Cairo and Tunisia to Occupy in New York, Madrid and Tel Aviv. At the same time they are characterised by the use of digital media.
The Yurt Empire are artists and activists that just completed a 4 day workshop for their project: They are intending to built 6 yurts on vacant sites in Sydney and attempt to inhabit these yurts for 28 days. Their chosen sites are just about to be developed and were highly contested. For this project the group chose to define their approach through performative storytelling, permaculture and collaborative investigations – check ... more »
I recently went to visit the Milkwood Permaculture farm in central new South Wales in Australia. Nick and Kirsten are doing pretty amazing things on the land! They have created an abundant farm system from scratch. Have a look at their site http://milkwood.net/.
The Round Table Club was established in 1927 as a means for male British professionals and businessmen to network and share opportunities. Their motto of ‘adopt, adapt and improve’ is a direct quote from the then Prince of Wales, Edward VIII in his address to the British Industries Fair, 1927, in which he urged industry leaders to work together for the greater good of Britain. The central dart-board iconography of ... more »
While looking at the geometric green space situated on the Sjöfartsgatan wasteland in Stockholm, another project comes to mind. In the project ’294 Green Roof’ by Beth Hamer she planted a garden on the roof top of Jumping Jacks night Club on Sauchiehall Street(one of the most polluted urban arteries in Scotland.) The project was Hamer’s final degree show at the Glasgow School of Art and was a suggestion at the greater potential for growing/green spaces in ... more »
Texts and Essays of interest
‘The role of humans in the environment is to understand how it functions, and to promote its continued functioning. Since man is just one species 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.’ (Gilles Clement, 2006) The French horticultural engineer, landscape architect, gardener, botanist and ... more »
“I want to question urban planning through the study of places which ascape a fixed definition of city or of architecture: empty lots, waste lands, demolition sites; places which due the forgetfulness or lack of interest escape a defined design and are open to all kind of possibilities.” (Almarcegui, www.enoughroomforspace.org) Lara Almarcegui is a Spanish contemporary artist based in Rotterdam, her work highlights neglected or undefined spaces within urban environments, ... more »
Cities and natural process, By Michael Hough Biopolis: Patrick Geddes and the City of Life. By Volker M. Welter, Iain Boyd Whyte Marzluff, J.M (2008) Urban Ecology- An International Perspective on the Interaction Between Humans and Nature. Clement,G. http://in-english.blogsthema.marseille-provence2013.fr/archives/8 Andrews, M. (2006) Land, Art: A cultural Ecology Handbook. The RSA, London. Almarcegui, L. (2009) Guide to the Wastelands of the Lea Valley: 12 Empty Spaces Await the London Olympics. London, Barbican ... more »