The 2015 Festival of Landscape Architecture: This Public Life kicks off on Saturday 10 October 2015 in Melbourne. While the main events are the conference and the research summit, the 11-day festival also includes a range of fringe events designed to celebrate the richness of the built environment. ArchitectureAU selects a few of the best.
Architect Bjarke Ingels speaking to Parkour freerunners Team JiYo.
Watch: My Playground
Sunday 11 October, 6:30 – 9:00pm
My Playground, a 2010 film by Kaspar Astrup Schroder traces the connection between buildings and the human body and celebrates the phenomenon of parkour, or freerunning – a non-competitive sport where participants run along buildings, rooftops and landscapes attempting to negotiate obstacles using only their bodies.
The filmmaker sets out to closely examine the way that traceurs, or freerunners, interact with architecture – honing in on parkour and urban mobility in modern cities spaces via Team JiYo and the people that determine how the space is shaped within our cities.
Mainly set in Copenhagen, the film follows Team JiYo as they explore the city and encounter the obstacles it presents. Award-winning architect Bjarke Ingles, founder of BIG Architects, is fascinated by the way Team JiYo conveys architecture and takes the team to his buildings, to explore their skills, which may be just as groundbreaking as the architecture itself.
Portal – Soundscape/Landscape/Escape by Luke Jaaniste.
Image: Courtesy AILA
Hear: Portal – Soundscape/Landscape/Escape
Monday 12, Tuesday 13, Wednesday 14 October, from 3:00pm
At the newly opened MPavilion designed by Amanda Levete Architects, sonic-spatial-social artist Luke Jaaniste will create a series of sound installation of hypnotic patterns with a collection of vintage keyboards. Jaaniste will create different soundscapes that shift with time and space, responding to the architecture and ambience. The installation will be followed by a workshop where participants will be given a tutorial in ambient design by adding to the installation using their smartphones and mobiles speakers. This event is free.
Play in the city.
Image: Courtesy AILA
Talk: Play in the City
Tuesday 13 October, 6:00 - 7:30pm
Four panellists come together to discuss the future of play in the city and the physical, philosophical and psychological benefits that play brings. What constitutes play and why is it so important for the children, teenagers and adults of the future? How does urban play constitute shared public memory? Panellists include early childhood educators, a playwright and a creative producer. This event is free.
Krump Park.
Image: Courtesy AILA
Dance-off: Krump Park
Saturday 17 October, 10:00am - 6:00pm
So you think you can design, but can you dance? Visit the pop-up park at Les Erdi Plaza/SIGNAL, Flinders Walk and join in on the “Art of Buck” krumping dance session with the Burncity Krump Community. The pop-up park is a design competition organized by the RMIT Student Landscape Architecture Body. The park will be installed for one day only for the krumping session. This event is free.
Melbourne City - A Sensory Adventure.
Image: Courtesy AILA
Explore: Melbourne City – A Sensory Adventure
Sunday 18 October, 1:00 - 4:30pm
Join well-being consultant and meditation teacher Dr Nadine Cameron for a different perspective on the city. The Sensory Adventure takes participants on a range of tours of the city that draw insight from biology, philosophy, anthropology and sociology. The tours are designed to help participants become more in tune with their senses and experience the everyday differently.
ArchiPong ping pong tournament.
Image: Courtesy AILA
Play: ArchiPong
Sunday 18 October, 4:00 - 7:00pm
To finish off the last weekend of the festival, ArchiPong will be hosting a casual ping pong tournament at MPavilion and the surrounding Queen Victoria Gardens. Get your game face on in a knock out competition for bragging rights and the Golden Paddle or engage in a casual game under the late afternoon sun. This event is free and no registration is required.
The 2015 Festival of Landscape Architecture: This Public Life takes place in Melbourne, 10–20 October. For more on the festival’s conference, research summit and events, click here.
