atom11:12-9-11
Contents |
Concept Idea
This apparition could be a surface that leads you through the bushes, it could be a tube lets you be completely alone [or intimately hidden], sometimes it is a shelter, protecting you from the rain. Sometimes it has small windows, letting you look at an old tree, one you have never seen before ,or maybe its just grass, or a strawberry bush.
Status Quo
The De Vries van Heystplantsoen site, as it exists now, contains four basic types of space: paths, lawns, bushes and entrances. Existing since 1915, it is clear that the site was designed in a manner as to let the nature take over. Indeed, nature has taken over a bit. The effect of this design is a powerful one. Visitors get a sense of wilderness when walking the paths; on a sunny day butterflies abound, and sweet odours fill the air.
Exploration
One of our connections during this exploration was in the form of an old man, sitting on a bench and relaxing. He claimed to have been using the site for a long time; he couldn't remember when he first came to the site. He is happy with the site the way it is currently, and cannot imagine anything which will make the site better. What he does not know is that in the next year, students will take over the park, and like it or not, change is on the way.
"This is nice"
"Huh?"
"Not Again!"
"I can't come here anymore"
Reaction
In a historic sense, the evolution of our site is closely tied with the creation of the TU Delft Botanical Gardens. Separated only by one year in their founding, these two locations are linked in their functions and in their futures. The municipality of Delft has plans to improve accessibility to the site while maintaining the characteristics that the site has come to represent. The park functions as an alternative option for visitors unwilling to pay to enter the TU Delft Botanical Gardens. In this way, the two sites are linked, while the park serves as a bridge, connecting the surrounding environs to the Botanical Gardens. While close in function, the method of discovery and organization of both sites are actually quite different. No placards or plant names adorn the paths of the de Vries van Heystplantsoen site, unlike the neighboring gardens. This ambiguity allows the flora to be experienced in a more experiential manner, as opposed to an educational manner. The 'mystery' that accompanies a personal discovery of a place is much more intriguing for our conceptual aims.
Please find below some explorations of how we have attempted to describe the mystery of the site.
The watercolors that follow describe potential uses of space, each united with a device of some sort,
here represented by an undulating plane that performs various functions based on the needs of users.
connection diagram
silence
protection
observe
discovery
layers:gather
layers:separate
options
Impressions
The park seems to be a quiet and nicely abandoned place. This gives it a special atmosphere when you get into it; it belongs to you at this moment yet at the same time, one intuitively feels that you cannot see everything in the first moment. This abandonment makes the park hidden, which might make the guests curious. The park has so much inaccessible space, which would be nice to discover. And in this way to discover things in the nature relates to the botanic garden just next to the park. However here the way of discovering goes not into this academic way of a botanic garden, then much more into exploring the park. This may happen in different levels, or layers.
