[Re] Naturalized histories
Author(s)
Oficinaa
Silvia Benedito (PT)
Alexander Häusler (DE)
Client(s)
City of Ingolstadt
Competition team
Silvia Benedito (PT)
Architect-urbanist
Velania Cervino (IT)
David Birge (US)
Architects
Marion Eisenmann (DE)
Artist
Europan 11 Ingolstadt
2013-2015
The team developed installations for 400m pathway of the Donau-Loop project.
Embedded in the vegetation at hand and accessible by a small dirt path, the hidden clearings are retreats for rest, tranquillity and recreation, plus discovery and play. The particular characteristics inside the fluvial landscape were analysed, like the location of the trees, the ivy covers, the light incidence, the wind and the river humming. These were used to conceptualize minimal interventions that create unique and distinct atmospheres and microclimates.
Visual identification of the Stadt Park Donau is a top priority for the project, particularly, along the 12 km pathway of the Donau-Loop. Two main features establish cohesive identification of the Donau-Loop: colour and the recognizable thread/design subject that runs through the project’s features. The chosen colour is the yellow-gold, selected for its ability to promote the expansion of light in space. It appears as ground material, as curbs along the pathways, as pigment in the concrete furnishings, in the signage and punctuations that help locate visitors, and on brochures that guide visitors through the various spaces in the project. The main design subjects for the multiple furnishing elements developed for Donau Park and Donau Loop are the tree branch and stump, as well as the river pebble, used for smaller scale, punctuating interventions.
In 2014, the team designed the Scent Cabinet to celebrate the Danube Day on June 21. Installed in the decommissioned gauge station along the river, the installation celebrates the various scents of the immediate alluvial forest. These scents were produced and made by OFICINAA while testing various processes of cooking, distillation and extraction of the essence. Inside the cabinet, ten perfume bottles and specimens hang from the ceiling, inviting visitors to smell the various ephemeral smells of the floodplain and to identify the botanical selection. Behind the essences, a sensory map of the site lines the walls of the cabinet. This map, created with gathered data on humidity, temperature, sound and wind speed visualizes a snapshot of the sensorial subtleties located on site. Besides, it captures the atmospheric environments of the forest and the micro-climates that generated the botanical ingredients of the exhibition. The surface of the floor is gravel and, as the visitor walks in, there is an immediate arrest of attention. The sound changes as the perception of the various aromas in the air appear to the public.





