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#26, november 2020
COLLABORATION
AS A PATH TO YŪGEN The landscapes are as multidimensional as human relationships. It is always interesting to learn the details of a new project from each of its co-authors. Liudmyla Beloded, the founder of the Beloded Landscaping Bureau, Registered member of the Society of Garden Designers (SGD) and board member of the Guild of Landscape Architects of Ukraine (GLAU) told PRAGMATIKA.MEDIA about the specifics and experience of her collaboration with Hiroki Matsuura while working on the new Kyiv public space Main Plaza.
TALKER:
IRYNA ISACHENKO 142
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PRAGMATIKA.MEDIA: The designer Hiroki Matsuura elegantly addressed you as a «nature ambassador». How did you get involved in a MADMA urbanism + landscape joint project for UNIT.City? Liudmyla Beloded: In 2017, at GREEN MAX company, in Heswijkdinter, the Netherlands, we took a training course on the assembly and installation of «structural cells», the trees life support systems (more on structural cells is in the article «Mission is survival. Recipes of happiness for city trees». — Ed. note). Our partner, Ebben tree nursery, introduced us to the architect Hiroki Matsuura and arranged a meeting at his office in Rotterdam. Then we communicated remotely for a while, and in 2018, Hiroki approached us with a proposal to take part in the design of Main Plaza in Kyiv UNIT. City innovation park as a local partner. It is a common international practice for the principal to collaborate with local designers familiar with Ukrainian realities, building codes, and the range of plants that can be operated in our climate zone. Interestingly, consulting on the selection of plants took place as early as the concept developing stage, since it was important for Hiroki to formulate a clear terms of reference and understand how realistic it was to implement this or that idea.
WORK ON THE DOCUMENTATION IS A CRUCIAL STAGE WHEN SKETCHES MUST BE TRANSFORMED INTO FIGURES AND DRAWINGS
No less important was the second stage, the work with the documentation, when all the beautiful sketches and visualizations must be transformed into figures and drawings, according to which Ukrainian contractors can work. The project must fully comply with modern Ukrainian DBN (Ukraine’s National Building Code). And now, two years later, the Main Plaza project is in the home stretch. At first glance, it may seem that two years is a long time to create a landscape on a relatively small area.
he focuses on the expressiveness of the landscape and object, the emotion, the brightness of the project, and its uniqueness. He is ready to overcome any difficulties in order to achieve the effect and by no means is ready for compromises. In our realities, designers are accustomed to unquestioningly take into account customer’s expectations and most often agree with the remarks: for instance, to make something a bit simpler, artlessly, why we need this detailing…
Although the difficulty was that Hiroki’s concept was so unconventional that we had to hire many subcontractors to complete every detail. All of them had to be immersed in the topic, and, of course, approval takes a lot of time. Perhaps our next joint project for UNIT.City — «Business Park» — will move forward quicker. We are already starting the specification documents for it. However, I am not sure that things will go much faster, since «Business Park» also has a pronounced individual character, so no model solutions are foreseen again.
But Matsuura is absolutely uncompromising! He calmly, politely and confidently rejects all attempts to simplify the task for contractors and facilitate the work for builders: no, we work in strict accordance with the project.
P.M.: What are the pros and cons of such a collaboration with a Japanese architect? Do your approaches to landscape design differ in any way, are there any national features? L. B.: This is the most non-standard collaboration in my experience. Hiroki has distinctive landmarks. First of all, 144
UNIT.City business campus. Photo: Ivan Avdeienko
His attention to the smallest detail is incredible! He can spend a lot of time laying out the tiles. He will measure, calculate, and then say, «This piece of tile should not lie here, because it is wrong.
Let’s recalculate everything so that we don’t have fragments at all!» That is, he needs pinpoint precision of calculations and no less pinpoint performance. I can say that it was a rewarding tough school for us. P.M.: Can this be called a European approach, or is this meticulousness more characteristic of Japan? L. B.: It’s hard to say. Of course, the European approach is a precise performance of obligations, concerning the terms of reference and budget. However, treating any process rather like creativity than work, each project — like an art object that should evoke emotions — this is, perhaps, an oriental feature. For each of his projects — be it an architectural object or a landscape — Hiroki composes a detailed legend. In his presentations, the story is the most important 145
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and perhaps the most exciting part. So the standards are lifted notably higher — to the level of art. Therefore, the architect is sincerely surprised when he suddenly hears a request «to make it easier». For example, it took us a lot of time to find the paving material and the contractor to complete the construction of the Bento Box retaining wall, to place the concrete between the containers. Hiroki believed that the offered black colour was not black enough, he noticed an unwanted blue or brown hue and demanded to find another material. It is uncharacteristic for Ukrainians to pay so much attention to the smallest details. Or, more pointedly, such a habit has not yet formed. P.M.: With such approach on the principal’s side, did the collaboration leave room for your creativity? L. B.: Hiroki set the task, «I would like to see something that could induce maximum emotions. What plants are typical for the Ukrainian Bento Box?» And we began to ponder what plants to choose that would unmistakably identify Ukraine. We offered compile rowan, viburnum, mallow, and berries to remind us that the Bento Box was initially a lunch box. Although in the present case, it is first of all an impression box. That is why our Bento is multi-coloured. There is, for example, a light green one, with vegetable crops. There is a sakura unit as a reference to the traditional Japanese cherry orchard — it will be an impressive spectacular bloom in spring. There is a Bento Box in a bronze-crimson scale, with columnar beeches that symbolize strength, stability, and dignity. We will plant maples — field and grey, which are beautiful in any season, but in autumn, thanks to their bright foliage, they become the overall composition center. They will be call up with ginkgo, whose foliage turns golden as colds intensify.
YOU WILL BE ABLE TO COME TO IN UNIT.CITY FOR HANAGARI AND MOMIJIGARI 146
So anyone will be able to come to in UNIT.City for Hanagari and Momijigari (Japanese traditions of admiring the spring blossoms and autumn dressing of maples. — Ed. note). We will also have a monochrome box, actually white, for which we select the plants with amply light foliage. The willow-leaf pear with a white-grey crown, covered with a mass of snow-white flowers in spring, is going to lead there. Photo: Iryna Isachenko
As early as at the concept stage, Hiroki and I have developed colour maps for each of the seasons to predict
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Main Plaza space at UNIT.City. Concept and design: MADMA urbanism + landscape. In collaboration with Beloded Landscaping
how the landscape would look in any of the months and what would become an accent in spring, summer, autumn, and winter. P.M.: Have you taken into account such a remarkable property of many plants as scent? L. B.: Of course! It would be inexcusable not to pay attention to fragrances. They will be provided by the spring flowering of sakura and pears, and in the «light green» Bento Box, except for vegetable crops, we will use spicy herbs. P.M.: Do you think visitors will perceive the Bento Box associative flow without additional information? Or should the story of this landscape be spelled out somewhere? L. B.: It seems to me, the garden itself does not need any explanatory notes or detailed transcripts. As Vsevolod Ovchinnikov wrote in the book «Sakura Branch» about the European development of knowledge about Japan, «Yūgen, or the beauty of understatement, is that beauty that modestly lies in the depths of things, not striving to the surface.» (Yūgen is one of the «forms of beauty», intuitive, symbolic perception of a natural phenomenon or the prototype of a work in Japanese culture. — Ed. note). Although, I would still tell a story behind it. Because knowing the concept helps you to dive deeper into the context, and pay attention to some details, trying to figure out exactly what they mean. It is not for nothing that symbolism remains one of the main trends in art — it bewitches, arouses curiosity, makes one think and uses the imagination. The whole culture of Japan is awash with symbolism. P.M.: Where do you order planting material for this project? L. B.: Most of the large-sized plants and shrubs will come from a Dutch tree nursery. It is crucial for Hiroki that the landscape by the work completed 148
time looks as impressive as possible. Therefore, we need adult and carefully formed pieces. In Ukraine, there are already excellent nurseries with plantations, but the trees have not had time to grow to the size and age we need. We will fill the middle and lower tiers with Ukrainian shrubs and perennials. This range is already available in our nurseries, and the quality of the plants is not inferior to European ones. However, the largesized plants will travel from the Netherlands. P.M.: How do you plan to provide comfortable conditions for the development of these large-sized plants? Are you creating an «underground landscape» with «structural cells» for their roots? L. B.: UDP agreed to carry out all the necessary preparatory work to provide the plants with fertile soil for many years to come. There was no need to use structural cells in work on Main Plaza. Although, we plan to use them in the implementation of the Business Park project, and since there are many communications under the square, we used the root barriers to protect communications and redirect root growth to a safe zone. P.M.: The designer also positions the Main Plaza landscape as a showcase for biodiversity. Do you use rare plants for Ukrainian cities, which will arouse children and adults’ interest? L. B.: This assortment of plants is actually rare in urban landscaping, and even more so in such complex mixes. For some reason, we have internal censorship on the use of non-standard plants. Typically, designers operate with a limited set. Perhaps, they do not want to take risks, because, as a rule, there are very few projects with mature plants. They use what is available in garden centers or local nurseries. As I said, because the trees are not matured enough yet, it is quite difficult for a person without «an eye», a rich visual experience, to imagine how they will look on the site in a few
years. There are many varieties and forms of ginkgo, for instance — and you need to understand which one to use. There are compact vertical forms in the form of an arrow, there are spherical ones. For Bento Box, we have chosen a columnar shape — I have not seen such trees on our capital city’s streets. But I look forward to the pine one being the most spectacular Bento Box. As an accent, we have chosen pines of a particular shape, which is called «wind blown». There will also be array-forming pine trees interspersed with stone hills. I assume, this image is fuelled precisely by Japanese culture. By the way, Hiroki insists that he must certainly be present when the stone is laid out and planting work is performed. It is very important for him that everything is implemented following his idea. P.M.: When do you plan to start planting? After all, large-sized plants can be planted even in cold weather.
L. B.: The main planting work is scheduled for March. According to the plan, in February, together with the client’s managers, we are going to the Netherlands, where we are going to consider the plants that we had selected and booked for our project in advance once again. It can be helpful to look at them with a fresh pair of eyes. Then we will deliver the trees to Kyiv by several tracks. By this time, all major construction work should be completed. And the main magic will begin — when the construction site begins to take on a sketchy appearance, turning into an exquisite landscape! Given our detailed preliminary planning, I think we can handle the planting and shaping in a month. The builders will then come to the site, who will perform the paving — this is the final stage. Well, that’s all — you can go, admire and relax. 149
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P.M.: In European cities, it is now ultra-fashionable to use elements of the Udolphian style. Will there be graminaceous plants in your landscape? L. B.: There will be graminaceous plants, but I would not call it an Udolphian technique, because in this case we have to deal with a limited scale, within which it is not possible to create arrays. Pete Udolph usually «paints» his landscapes with broad strokes. We will have more space on the «Business Park» site, and there, according to Hiroki’s concept, it is planned to create arrays of grasses and perennials. As far as the Main Plaza is concerned, the grasses will become part of the lower tier.
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GARDEN AS AN IMPRESSION. MAIN PLAZA DEMONSTRATES A NEW APPROACH TO URBAN GARDENING
P.M.: How demanding will this landscape be in terms of looking after? L. B.: Since large-sized plants are used in the project, it is obvious that this is an expensive landscape. Expensive to create. However as far as daily care is concerned, no special high-budget maintenance procedures are required. We strive to make maintenance easy. It is enough to control watering and fertilization. In two years, large-sized plants will no longer need watering, and it will have to be stopped, since there is no point in additional irrigation of plants that have already taken root. As for some kind of protective measures — they certainly should be carried out. Usually, a map of agricultural activities is drawn up. We deliberately did not include any super-capricious exotic plants that require doing some «rain dance» in the project.
P.M.: Will there be any special topiary work or shaping? L. B.: The Bonsai pines will surely require an experienced arborist’s care. However, the specialists who know how to handle them have already appeared in Ukraine. To correctly orient the offshoots, it will be enough to invite a professional once a year, in the spring, who knows how a pine paw will develop, whether it needs to be cut, and if so, how many buds to leave. But we already have our professional staff. That is, we will not have to call someone from abroad for this. The largest European nursery Ebben has been selected as a supplier of trees for the Main Plaza landscape in Kiev UNIT.City
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P.M.: You travel all over the world. Have you come across any similar landscapes? How unique is the Main Plaza design on a global scale?
L. B.: A lot of bright, exciting landscape projects are now being implemented in central China, Hong Kong, and Singapore. It is not improbable that one can find a project that could equate with this one. In total, this is an «assortment concept», where can be no complete coincidence. I haven’t seen anything like it. Therefore, our project can be truly called unique. Working with emotions, working with an image, a garden as an attitude, as an impression — this is genuinely new for us. We got used to a completely different approach to urban gardening. And I hope that the Main Plaza landscape will have these stereotypes redefined.
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