six contenders announced for the international garden festival

six contenders announced for the international garden festival
all images courtesy of the international garden festival

out of approximately 300 proposals from 35 differnt countries, six design firms have been selected to have their projects realized at the international garden festival in canada. in the 15th edition of this exhibition, the winning entries are representing their respective homelands from canada, south korea, spain, switzerland, and the united states. in eastern quebec, les jardins de métis and the adjacent reford gardens are the popular site for this competition which merges the disciplines among architecture, landscape architecture, design and art. a dialogue between conservation, tradition, and innovation is a recursive theme in each proposal.

‘rotunda’ by citylaboratory

in ‘rotunda’, spanish architects, aurora armental ruiz and stefano ciurlo walker of citylaboratory have implemented their principle belief of creating service spaces in both natural and urban environments. a circular reflective basin acts as an oasis in the surrounding forest to promote new life.

‘cone garden’ by livescape

flipped upside-down the bright cones are positioned in many way

seoul-based livescape is a team not only consisting of architects and landscape architects, but also a specialized botanist and media artist. in the narrative of ‘cone garden’, traffic cones — symbolic of construction sites — are used as both planters and seating arrangements to address the ongoing properties of spaces as they are built, used, destroyed, and rebuilt.

‘afterburn’ by civilian projects

elevation and plan of ‘afterburn’

ksenia kagner and nicko elliott of brooklyn-based, civilian projects, plan an installation of a vertically placed charred trees. the rejuvenating power of the landscape is displayed with planted grasses dispersed through the plot.

‘méristème’ by châssi

the winning designers from canada, are monteal-based châssi, who proposed an interactive macroscopic structural representation of plant cell, in ‘méristème’. the geodesic shape is reminiscent of the popular buckminster fuller playground sculptures and is intended to be entered into, providing a semi-transparent shield to view out from.

‘orange secret’ by nomad studio

new york-based landscape design firm nomad studio, challenges visitors’ perception and is a study of how those respond in enclosed areas. in ‘orange secret’, a wooden partition separates space between a mundane but bold object, and the freedom links the visually stimulating orange field.

‘line garden’ by julia jamrozik and coryn kempster

a collaborative project by this canadian-swiss duo presents a contemporary labyrinth that is ever changing based on user activity and kinetic movement. a colorful installation made from security tape becomes illuminated in the sun and creates nodes for individuals and groups.

the international garden festival will be held from from june 28 to september 2014.