Forgotten Landscape - Landscape Festival Bergamo 2022

In the provincial capital of Bergamo, located in the Lombardy region at the foot of the Alps, the successful Landscape Festival - I Maestri del Paesaggio has been held in the centre of the upper town since 2011. On the famous Piazza Vecchia, internationally renowned landscape In the past, internationally renowned landscape architects have exhibited installations that represent their contemporary and also visionary interpretation of landscape and city in interaction with people.

In September 2022, a design idea by landscape architecture students was implemented at this prominent location for the first time as part of this festival.

Students of the University of applied sciences Weihenstephan -Triesdorf, field of study: open space planning, developed design approaches for a temporary installation on the Piazza Vecchia in the summer semester 2021<link file:55079 download herunterladen der datei>(see link brochure)..

The thematic orientation of the design approach was basically free to choose. A profound and reflected examination of current and future-relevant questions and challenges in a changing global world was expected. The role of landscape architecture in this structure and the attitude of the students as future landscape architects in this transformation process should become legible in the ideas. Another important aspect in working on the topic was the "provocation" of a dialogue with the citizens about the necessity and value of landscape and the confrontation as designers with the question of the possibilities and limits of temporary installations as a source of impulses for social reflection.

In an internal university competition, the work "Forgotten Landscape" was awarded a prize in cooperation with the festival organiser Arketipos from Bergamo and the decision was made to realise this work at the 2022 festival.

The work "Forgotten Landscape - The Riparian Forests of Lambardy" by the students Aurelia Ibach, Verena Hurler, Simon Schwarzl and Fabiola Leonett von Wachter was convincing due to its strong spatial structure. Based on the floodplain forests of the Po region, the typology of a floodplain forest with its various layers of vegetation and the Po River was traced in abstract form. Light installations and the use of water strengthen the atmosphere of a floodplain forest. In addition to this spatial quality, this work was convincing because of its content-related focus on the "Forgotten Landscapes". Landscapes that are forgotten today will be gone tomorrow if we do not notice them and focus on them. "Forgotten Landscape" was chosen as the festival's guiding theme, was reflected in the orientation of the accompanying programme and made a significant contribution to the quality and success of this year's festival.

In the phase of further development from last summer to this year's implementation, the students further developed their design with professional guidance and in cooperation with representatives of the organisers. The original design was changed, compromises had to be made for functional reasons, which were also painful from a design point of view. The creative power of the design withstood these changes.

This summer, the students realised their "Forgotten Landscape" together with experts on site. Being able to build their own design was a unique experience for them.

Through the competent and committed appearance of the students, the Faculty of Landscape Architecture of the HSWT was represented in a remarkable way on the international stage of landscape architecture.

A great success!

Prof. Birgit Schmidt in October 2022

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