MIFGS - Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show 2019

AKAS landscape architecture

with Bespoke Landscapes

Collaborator: Bespoke Landscapes

AKAS landscape architecture

with Bespoke Landscapes

The Anthropogenic Future garden repurposes waste and building materials to showcase a new type of garden, beautiful, robust and representative of our future urban landscape.

The design references the Anthropocene; the new geological epoch in which humans have become the biggest geological force on the planet. With the increasing demands and pressure on the environment due to rising population and consumption of resources, we believe gardens must be ecologically diverse, drought tolerant and vibrant spaces.

The design plays on the idea of the cross section cut, using perspex along the front as a window under the ground. The strata lines are both revealed at the front face of the garden and again at the back of the pavilion. Just as a seam of gold would be exposed in quartz, the design will reveal the everyday plastics showcased as the newly deposited strata. This will make explicit societies current addiction to plastics by creating a confusingly beautiful form with a highly damaging material. This plastic will be sourced from the Yarra River.

The planting palette selects species based on future resilience. This design aims to highlight how xeroscape planting can be rich with form, colour, texture and interest. The layout of the design is focused around a central pond, which is built in a naturalistic style but uses recycled concrete rubble instead of rock. Along the ponds edge the concrete doubles as a stepping stone path, leading to the apex of the design; a ‘floating’ metal cube which becomes the main pavilion and destination point. The cube is cantilevered over the water and is made from recycled metal. The garden makes use of topography to embed different deign elements and strategically uses materials and plants to create microclimates.