22.12.2010

Ganz Landscape Architects on Christmas Holiday

Over Christmas our studio will be closed as follows:
Friday 24th December 2010 - Friday 31st December 2010.

 

01.12.2010

Housing cooperative Geissenstein-EBG, Lucerne

Final work on the village square has been completed. The large-grain asphalt surfacing has been polished, and the seven gingko trees have been planted in tree collars specially designed for the square by Ganz Landscape Architects. The plant lighting and benches have been positioned and installed.
Before, the square was divided into street, parking spaces, lawns, and small borders. Now it presents itself as a generously sized square, giving the housing cooperative Geissenstein-EBG an urban feeling.

 

15.11.2010

Archplatz, Winterthur

The competition was won in 2003, and the building application was approved in 2006, but owing to a planning stop, the further development of the Archhöfe (Arch courtyards) went into an undetermined period of hibernation. But starting this past September, we were able to resume our landscaping of the Archhöfe in Winterthur.
The Archhöfe form the western end of the station square, and for this reason our design for the Arch square located in front of it has an open and urban character.
A large bench will rise from a concrete strip; the bench will carry the sound of the rivulet Eulach that flows under it. The concrete strips that span the courtyard have further functions: They structure the courtyard in diamonds and incorporate trees, drainage, and other facilities.

 

25.10.2010

Photographs of Japan

Gallery semina rerum, Irène Preiswerk, is showing views of Japan by Japanese photographer Yamamoto Masao and Frauenfeld photographer Simone Kappeler starting November 4, 2010.
The opening of the show on November 4th is also a reception for the release of Simone Kappeler's new book, Dazwischen - in between, Japan 2009.
Opening: Thursday, November 4, 2010, 6-8 p.m.
Show: November 4, 2010 to Februart 12, 2011
Semina rerum, Irène Preiswerk
Cäcilienstrasse 3
8032 Zurich
T +41 (0)44 251 26 39
ipreiswerk@bluewin.ch, www.seminarerum.ch

03.10.2010

Giant Herbs and Monster Trees

Kunsthaus Zürich shows drawings and prints by Carl Wilhelm Kolbe (1759-1835).
Kolbe's tree landscapes are free creations of imagination inspired by careful observation of nature. Kolbe had a passion for walks in the woods. In Kolbe's surrealistic landscapes with hypertrophied vegetation the plants grow rampantly into the monumental and grotesque.
Kunsthaus Zürich
Heimplatz 1
CH-8001 Zurich
T +41 (0)44 253 84 84
info@kunsthaus.ch, www.kunsthaus.ch
Exhibition until 28 November 2010
Sat/Sun/Tues 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Wed-Fri 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Closed Mondays

06.09.2010

On Nature

The exhibition displays photographic and drawn works of art, with nature as the subject.
The study of nature was long dependent on illustrative representations of natural forms and manifestations. Eminent artists were involved in the work of nature illustration. But although modern science no longer depends on artistic visualizations, artists have not lost their interest in nature, as this exhibition at the ETH shows.
Exhibition: Now to October 15, 2010
Monday - Friday: 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Wednesday: 10 a.m. - 7 p.m.
The Collection of Prints and Drawings ETH Zurich
ETH Hauptgebäude, E52
Rämistrasse 101
8092 Zurich T +41 (0)44 632 40 46
info@gs.ethz.ch, www.gs.ethz.ch

17.08.2010

Ganz Landscape Architects’ Library

The library at Ganz Landscape Architects is constantly growing, reflecting the interests and curiosity of its users. Whether it is a frequently used reference work like Zander and Hans-Rudolf Heyer's Historische Gärten der Schweiz or a book about artists such as Mark Dion (Cabinet of Curiosities), Ian Hamilton Finlay and his one-word poems (Ian Hamilton Finlay: A Visual Primer), or a philosophical work such as Rudolf Borchardt's The Passionate Gardener or Henry David Thoreau's Walking - the volumes in the library provide poetry and blossoming that informs and is interwoven in the daily work process. A searchable online catalogue of the library collection, which currently contains several hundred volumes, is now online available. The cataloging of the library using a library program developed especially for this project took several months' work and is completed for now. But new publications and acquisitions can easily be catalogued in the future.

02.08.2010

Summer Holidays

Ganz Landscape Architects are on holiday. The Studio is running slow from 2nd till 13th August. Only very few people are working during that time.

24.07.2010

Garden Thalmann, Zurich

This month Ganz Landscape Architects added terrace plantings in the Thalmann Garden in Zurich, thus completing the entire project for the client.
Last year's new plantings have developed nicely and are already lush.

01.07.2010

See you at the top!

See you at the top' - a site-specific installation by Ariane Roesch at Horse Law Press.
2nd Juli 2010
8 pm - midnight
Location:
Horse Law Press
Bremgartnerstrasse 3
8003 Zurich

 

12.06.2010

Globi at the Airport

A little monkey from Brazil named Leo runs scared at Zurich International Airport and seeks refuge in a plant courtyard at Terminal Dock E. The plant courtyard was created a few years ago by Ganz Landscape Architects. In this latest Globi book, Globi at the Airport, the plant courtyards are the scene of the further adventures of Globi, Switzerland's most successful character in children's books. Together with the over 300,000 visitors to the airport annually, Ganz Landscape Architects are very pleased that the plant courtyards are very popular, as Globi and Leo the monkey confirm.

04.06.2010

Grotten, Felsengärten und Kunstberge

Conference at ETH Zurich, June 10-11-, 2010
Grotten, Felsengärten und Kunstberge [Grottos, Rock Gardens, and Artificial Mountains] is the topic of a conference organized by the Institute of Historic Building Research and Conservation together with the Institute of Landscape Architecture at ETH Zurich.
Since the sixteenth century, the grotto has been a widely used element in the European garden. Starting in Italy and France, garden grottos were built in many variations and richly decorated with tufa, seashells, fossils, and minerals. Parallel to advances in geology, paleontology, and cave exploration towards the end of the eighteenth century, artificial imitations of natural caves, mountain themes, and rock formations were a prominent part of Romantic landscape gardens. Grotto and mountain motifs disappeared from garden art at the turn of the twentieth century, but they flourished in architecture and have continued to do so into present times.
Location:
ETH Zurich, Main Building (HG)
Semper-Aula, HG G 60
Rämistrasse 101
CH-8092 Zurich
For further information, see http://www.idb.arch.ethz.ch

20.05.2010

Garden Tour: C.G. Jung Garden on June 5th, 2010

The Bund Schweizer Landschaftsarchitekten [Swiss Federation of Landscape Architects] (BSLA) issues a special invitation on June 5-6, 2010, for the 2010 Landscape Architecture Day: garden tours of about 100 gardens and parks, some of them private, across Switzerland. Ganz Landscape Architects will give us a look at the garden of the founder of analytical psychology, C. G. Jung, in Küsnacht. Daniel Ganz will provide a guided tour and explanations of the entire grounds, from their creation, over the traces of time, and up to the garden's present appearance of the garden as monument.
The garden tour will take place on June 5, 2010, at 9:30 a.m., starting from the meeting point at the entrance to the garden at Seestrasse 228 in 8700 Küsnacht.

04.05.2010

Tiefenbrunnen Bad and Park, Zurich

At Tiefenbrunnen Bad and Park final work is in full swing. On May 13th, the official opening day of all swimming recreation areas of the City of Zurich, Tiefenbrunnen Bad and Park will show its new splendor. The past winter was very severe. But thanks to smooth cooperation and great efforts of all of the companies involved in the project - especially Matter Garten Landschaft and the road construction firm Egg Bau AG - lost time was made up for, and execution stayed at a high quality level up to completion. Thanks to protection measures that were carried out consistently, the old stock of trees could be maintained. We are very pleased to turn over Tiefenbrunnen Bad and Park to the public.

21.04.2010

Jasminweg housing estate, Zurich

For Phase 2 of the Jasminweg housing estate in Zurich Ganz Landscape Architects drew up the exterior grounds plans; construction will start in April 2010.
The new residential buildings will be given individual private spaces, planted gardens, and generous zones for play and relaxation outdoors. The existing grounds will be changed to accommodate the multiuse needs. Homogenous asphalt surfacing frames the entire grounds, and black locusts (Robinia pseudoacacia) and poplars (Populus tremula) create shaded areas that complement the existing areas/squares.

 

15.04.2010

Invitation from SIA and Ganz Landscape Architects

Ganz Landscape Architects will present one of their current projects - the restoration of Tiefenbrunnen Park and Bad - at a SIA (Swiss Engineers and Architects Association) Zurich section event.
Already in 2006, Ganz Landscape Architects completed the overhaul of the area along the banks of the lake at Tiefenbrunnen. Now the restoration of the existing Tiefenbrunnen Park and Bad built in 1954 is underway. The project presentation describing the planning and construction process will be held at Tiefenbrunnen Park and Bad on April 20, 2010, at 5:00 p.m. in the all-purpose room. The meeting point is at the entrance to Tiefenbrunnen Park and Bad, Bellerivestrasse 200, 8008 Zurich.

 

07.04.2010

Trees Selected for Garden Courtyard in Lucerne

With construction of the garden courtyard at Unterlöchli Nursing Home in Lucerne underway since March 29, 2010, Ganz Landscape Architects has now been able to select the trees reserved for the project at Alfred Forster's tree nursery in Golaten. Fourteen impressive specimens of the upright cherry tree Prunus subhirtella ‘Autumnalis' will be planted at the site, which is demanding topographically due to height variations. The slender trees with their dark trunks will be limbed up 2.20m to 3.50m to allow free movement through the courtyard under a horizontal canopy formed by the light and airy crowns of the trees.
The planting of the cherry trees is scheduled for calendar week 15.

24.03.2010

Landscape care plan Integra Square, Wallisellen

After completing the plantings at the Integra Square residential redevelopment in Wallisellen, Ganz Landscape Architects drew up a landscape care plan for the entire grounds.
Our landscape care plan includes a landscape care calendar showing the tasks to be performed throughout the year to care for the plants, surfacing, and structural elements. The plan lists the design principles as well as the names and addresses of suppliers and service providers. For the development of the grounds, regular inspection and assessment of the grounds with the client and the people responsible for maintenance are important. Adjustments to the landscape care plan are essential for dynamic maturing of the grounds. Our landscape care plan is a tool for the client and the service providers and for us as the planners for the care of the Integra Square in the long term and to be able to assure and further develop the high quality of the grounds.

15.03.2010

‘Art in Architecture‘ by Hans Danuser

Semper Observatory, Zurich
during office hours
Monday - Friday, 9.00 a.m - 5.30 p.m
Collegium Helveticum
Semper Observatory
Schmelzbergstr. 25
8092 Zurich
T +41 (0)44 632 69 06
Ein Colloquium der Dinge [A Colloquium of Objects] is an ‘Art in Architecture' project by artist Hans Danuser, conceived for and opened at the start of the Collegium Helveticum fellow period 2009-2014 in the entrance hall of the old Semper Observatory. The art installation is not finished - it is open to development and change. The process is part of the concept. For this Art in Architecture project Danuser makes no changes to the space and its structure; instead he uses the space for his projection of architect Gottfried Semper's (1803-1879) design. The exhibit is complemented by design elements by the interior designers Gasser/Derungs and by a short video titled Erste Begegnungen [First Encounters].

12.03.2010

Trees planted at Tiefenbrunnen Bad and Park, Zurich

Five Populus nigra 'Italica' and two Populus x canadensis 10 to 15 m tall were recently planted at Tiefenbrunnen Park and Bad. The new trees replace old trees that had to be removed for safety reasons; the two species are typical for the Tiefenbrunnen grounds. In this way the senescent stock of trees is rejuvenated and the character of the landscape preserved.

26.02.2010

Garden courtyard at Nursing Home, Lucerne

A small task brings true salvation, as Scottish artist Ian Hamilton Finlay knew.
Ganz Landscape Architects had this lucky experience when planning and laying out the garden courtyard of the new annex building at Unterlöchli Nursing Home in Lucerne.
Behind the extension, a striking cast-in-place concrete wall surrounds the intimate garden courtyard. Ganz Landscape Architects designed the garden courtyard, which is set off by the clear enclosing wall, as an independent interior world, against the backdrop of the nearby woods. The façades of the new annex and the visible surfaces of the enclosing concrete wall form a boundary layer between intimate space and public space.
The topographically demanding site of the garden courtyard is covered uniformly with a Stabilizer surface, allowing free passage throughout. The garden courtyard will connect with, among other things, the new oratory/serenity room, leading to which there is a handicapped accessible pathway with a railing on one side.
The height differences in the terrain of the site have been incorporated into the design and made manageable by means of terracing with colored concrete planks; the terracing has a sculptural look. The concrete planks follow the course of the Stabilizer surfacing.
The light and airy crowns of the funnel-shaped, upright cherry trees (Prunus subhirtella) rise up over the entire garden courtyard as a horizontal tree roof. The trees flower early in mild winters and in sheltered locations; the lovely blossoms give the garden courtyard, also as seen from the new annex building, a magical ambience.

07.02.2010

New Trees to Replace Aging Poplars, Zurich

In calendar week 4, five poplars were removed in Tiefenbrunnen Park and Bad. Planted 50 years ago, the poplars had grown to a mighty size. At up to 35 m tall and up to 20 m wide, the trees were a dominant feature of Tiefenbrunnen Park and Bad. However, the short-lived trees were declining in health, and the branches were found to be in danger of breaking and the stability of the trees was critical. As safety concerns for users of the Park and Bad were great, the decision was made to remove the trees.
In the spring, new poplars of the same species (Populus canadensis and Populus nigra 'Italica') will replace the old poplars.

21.01.2010

Completion of the Chriesiweg school grounds project, Zurich

After two years of intensive construction work, the restoration of the Chriesiweg school grounds in Zurich has been completed!
With the planting of shrubs and trees, the work at the Chriesi school grounds was completed. Existing large trees were complemented by plantings of cherry plum trees (Prunus cerasifera ‘Woodii'), birches (Betula pendula), and Scotch pines (Pinus sylvestris). Interesting niches were created using hydrangeas, rhododendrons, peonies, ferns (Dryopteris filix-mas, Polystichum aculeatum), and grasses (Luzula nivea, Deschampsia cespitosa), and the original charm of the grounds was restored.
Ganz Landscape Architects would like to thank the builder and all of the planning partners and companies for the good cooperation and successful completion. And we hope that the children and teachers at Chriesiweg school will enjoy their new old school grounds!

04.01.2010

Bird house

Together with artist Brett Davidson Ganz Landscape Architects designed a bird house.
The design is based on Henry David Thoreau’s cabin at Walden Pond. The words (’seed, work, etc.’) are quoted from Thoreau’s most famous work, Walden; or, Life in the Woods.
Wood, painted white, 30.5 cm wide x 17 cm deep x 38.5 cm tall,
Opening: 30 mm diameter
For ordering information, see ‘Cabinet of curiosities' > ‘Horse Law Press'.