On the western side of Amsterdam's harbour you will find the Houthavens, where ships unloaded their cargo of logs in times gone by, and where now an interesting new district is emerging. The Danzigerkade quayside has become one of the new promenades with business developments. Many fashion and creative industries – including Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein – can be found here, as well as hotels and restaurants which attract local residents.

In their design for the public space, Buro Sant en Co referenced the history of the area, but they also sought a link to its current uses. The result is a daring design of pronounced contrasts. The striking paving – by Metten Stein+Design – runs right up to the facades of the buildings, laid in a herringbone design echoing a wooden floor. The pattern is not only a reference to the logs that used to be unloaded here, but also to the newly arrived fashion industry, echoing the woven herringbone designs in fabrics.

Greenery can be found in the form of organic, splat-shaped beds scattered over the quayside. A mixture of various trees and soft grasses accentuates the contrast with the stony environment. Because of the underground car park beneath, raised beds are needed for the roots. Rainwater is absorbed into their foundations and evaporates on hot days, cooling down the area. The large boardwalk is an inviting place to sit, watch, muse, show fashion and take photographs.

All built environments and landscapes are bathed in light. As such, it goes without saying that light is a mighty and given component in their designs. The first spatial designers understood this logic. In their worship of sun gods, and later of the God who created light on the first day (and sun on the fourth), they eagerly made use of daylight to strengthen their spatial creations, and thus also fulfil the divine component.

Gardens whose designs were based on the classical components, such as daylight, have often become known as 'timeless'. One of these is the Villa Gamberaia (Settignano, Italy) whose typical 17th century garden design is still there today. The entire effectiveness of this garden is underpinned by light. It darkens the dark colours and backlights the cypress trees, accentuating their shape and enabling us to experience their bizarreness. It regulates our comfort, emotions and space-time orientation, making the garden into its own clock and guide, and the conduit for our experience. Light is behind the overall functioning of the garden too: take the positioning of the lemon garden on the highest terrace to maximise the amount of sunlight to ensure a good harvest.

A walk through these gardens is like travelling through a series of individual spaces that perform a harmonious drama of darkness and light. From densely shaded tree canopied spaces and grottos, to spaces between spaces, to the light-filled spaces where the grass colours poisonous green and the water sparkles fiercely. Nestle in the coolness of shadows, then step into the light for the bright views over sunlit Florence and the Arcadian landscape: this is the show that defines the 'Gamberaian landscape'.

Ancient logics are so obvious that they are often forgotten out of habituation, then re-discovered because something didn’t make sense. So, no matter how lost a logic has become, we need not worry about losing something that is immortal. Daylight in design remains one of the eternal ‘givens’ of timeless design.

Saluti from the editor in Florence

– ADVERTORIAL –

After developing new residential neighbourhoods in its harbours, Hamburg is now expanding into the countryside surrounding the city. The area where Oberbillwerder is planned is not at all urban itself, so creating connections to the city is crucial – hence the subtitle of the masterplan: 'Connected City'. Yet ‘connected' also refers to aspects such as urban agriculture, and water and energy management. Oberbillwerder will be energy self-sufficient and properties to buy and rent will be available in all price classes.

The masterplan was jointly made by landscape architects at the Dutch office of Karres and Brands and architects and urban planners from Adept in Copenhagen. 7000 new homes and 5000 workspaces will be built, as well as shops and facilities. Hamburg city centre is a mere 15-minute drive using existing infrastructure. To optimise the connections, the masterplan places great emphasis on public transport and bicycle and pedestrian mobility. Another key objective is to make connections between the neighbourhood and the surrounding area.

The new neighbourhoods, the cycle lanes and pedestrian routes, the public transport system and the blue and green structure of Oberbillwerder are closely interlinked. The way the area is organised will contribute to the climate-proof nature of the new district. The streets are convex rather than concave, and wide canals, large wadis and streams will be introduced to create different atmospheres: the canal-side has a more urban feel than a green field for rainwater infiltration. The types of houses, facilities and the outdoor space will be adjusted to the different atmospheres. The result will be maximal diversity, as befits a big city like Hamburg.

The masterplan has been awarded the highest certification (platinum) from the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB). The combination of the size of the new district and the focus on sustainability is particularly unusual. The jury concluded that rural areas near existing cities are ideal sites for introducing sustainable, healthy, future-proof new developments.

Anouk Vogel / landscape architect

‘One thing is certain, we humans do not make the world a more beautiful place.’ A young man on a work placement in my practice suddenly uttered these words while looking dreamily at the parking space outside the office window. I was busy making coffee, but once I’d digested the full import of his words, my first reaction was one of sadness. But this emotion soon gave way to a feeling of urgency.

Why do I, a landscape architect, find it important to engage with beauty? Because I am convinced there is a connection between beauty and happiness. By ‘beauty’ or ‘aesthetics’ I don’t mean how things look. It’s not about physical characteristics, but about sensory experience. I experience beauty as something exciting, moving and inspiring, which then becomes a catalyst for connection. We want to share our experience of beauty with others – it prompts us to engage in dialogue with one other.

Next, beauty has a protective role. We are motivated to take care of places, objects and people that we feel a connection with. I’m not talking about the kind of beauty that can be measured according to the golden ratio. I’m interested in how places and objects acquire a soul. I’m particularly fascinated by the beauty that is waiting to be discovered during the design process: fragile, subtle and hesitant beauty, perhaps already present but not yet tangible in form or context.

I was trained according to the principle that beauty is a side issue in landscape architecture. I have never agreed with this viewpoint. Even now, I still don’t understand why landscape architects shouldn’t take part in the debate on aesthetics. Looking back at my time as a student, it is ironic that although we were taught that aesthetics are a side issue, much of the teaching was actually devoted to creating an emotional bond between people and their surroundings – which is exactly what I understand ‘beauty’ to be about and what motivates me in my work.

This column is also published in Scape #16 and in Blauwe Kamer #2.

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