There have been some interesting links  on the facebook page, though. James thinks we should get a PET tree. There’s a link to JR Artist’s page, the streets are his gallery, or is it theatre? And one about braille burgers that Wimpy made. There’s an announcement that GREENinc will be doing work on the UNISA campus in Pretoria and a quote from Robert Stern. And James has posted something from Sydney at last – a lovely interactive installation at the Museum of Contemporary Art. Our condolences went out to Elize when we learnt that her younger brother had been killed in a car accident early in the holidays.

’til next time.

We’ve worked on some fantastic projects -  the Innovation Hub in Botswana, the Memorial Acre in Sharpeville, hospitals in Mdantsane, Soweto, Parktown, Natalspruit and Phalaborwa, a traffic study in Rosebank and environmental upgrades arount the BRT here in Joburg were just some of them. We brought home an ILASA Award of Excellence from Durban. I went on a roadshow to several regional offices of the Department of Public Works around the country to tell them what landscape architecture is all about. Our founding partner Erika moved to a forest near Knysna. Molly left us, Flo and Elize joined us and Annamari went on maternity leave. The Gautrain started operating between Joburg and Pretoria, and changed our lives.

In the last month, we’ve posted an article on a beach promenade in Denmark, some new proposal sketch plan images and more pictures of Freedom Park. James did a walking tour with Johannesburg Ten Ahead author Gerald Garner for the Gauteng Society for Landscape Architecture year-end function, and posted a link to the Ten Ahead website.

With one week to go before we close our offices for the year, we are about to have our last Friday office lunch of 2011. Thank-you to all our clients and friends for your support during the year, and we wish you all a wonderful break and an even better 2012.

’til next year.

Two weeks ago everyone (except the new parents) went on an excursion to that other office baby, Freedom Park, taking the Gautrain from Rosebank. It was the first time that I’ve made the Pretoria trip on the train although I take it to the airport regularly, and it was definitely the best trip to Pretoria I’ve ever had. It was a beautiful, clear day and the landscape around the \\hapo at Freedom Park was looking spectacular. Many photos were taken, some have just been uploaded.
Also on the Facebook site, James posted an article about the launch of a new Pink Floyd album, check it out here. There’s also an article about parklets, small spaces in the city that are developed for pedestrians on municipal-owned land parcels, anything from parallel parking bays.   James also put up a link to the most beautiful salad patch he’s seen.

’til next time.

The big news this month must be that GREENinc is one of 50 international firms featured in a new book called Futurescapes, published by Thames and Hudson. Check it out.

James put up a post on the Facebook site saying he thought he’d like to try out this capsule hotel. The lights in your capsule gradually come on to wake you up in the morning without disturbing the guy in the next cubblyhole.

Does a sleeping bag count as a capsule? I slept out in one in the Imfolozi Game Reserve last month on a wilderness trail. Everyone’s lights came on at the same time, except the guy doing night watch. And you could sit up without bumping your head.

James also posted a link to post on growing infrastructure. With a bit of patience, something beautiful and useful, too. He suggests we could use models in photos of our work, like this series of Government Plaza in Tokyo. Maybe, but I’m sure we could do better!

Check out these cool portable LED lamps that Anton posted. He also posted some new pics of the Botswana Innovation Hub.

Finally, it’s really worth downloading this short film by Alex Roman called The Third and The Seventh. But be warned, you may never be happy with your animations again. Lovely.

’til next time…

]]> http://greeninclandscape.wordpress.com/2011/10/04/october-newsletter-2/feed/ 0 smglen Tea Time Passers By http://greeninclandscape.wordpress.com/2011/09/05/september-newsletter/ http://greeninclandscape.wordpress.com/2011/09/05/september-newsletter/#comments Mon, 05 Sep 2011 13:08:10 +0000 stuart http://greeninclandscape.wordpress.com/?p=173 ]]> Happy spring! The GREENinc facebook wall is awash with pink today, as our real boundary wall gets the pink treatment. It’s exciting, it’s friendly, it’s BRIGHT. And I can’t say I didn’t have my reservations. The decisions to do this kind of thing always get made when I’m out of the office, of course. “It’s not a joke.” PG told me when they showed me the colour tab that had been decided on by committee and in my absence. It’s great to know your colleagues value your opinion on things, isn’t it? “Don’t worry, if you don’t like it, we can always paint over it again,” Anton assured me. Right. Anyway, despite always finding myself in the role of devil’s advocate, I have to admit that the pink is ….vibey. Pop in and experience it for yourself!

Also posted in the last month are some photos of the model of the Botswana Innovation hub , the landscape having been modelled by SHoP using a 3D printer. Anton announced that GREENinc was part of the winning team appointed to reinvent Anglo American’s Joburg CBD campus. James posted some real green offices in Denver, a roller-skating rink at the high line in New York and an LED light installation on the Hudson River. He also posted the first photo of work starting at the June 16th Memorial project. Anton posted a slideshow on a mobile installation at Burning Man 2006. And then the pink stuff starts.

’til next time.

The thing about buildings is that they’re usually so … immovable. But not this one that Anton posted on Facebook. I love the way it can pop up anywhere, it gives it an element of surprise and playfulness.

James posted this watering can, so we don’t stray too far from the landscape theme.

I really enjoyed this video clip by Natalie Jeremijenko. She says that we have created unhealthy environments for ourselves, and for the creatures that share them with us, so she’s set up a clinic to treat them. The environments, that is. We tend to forget that we share our spaces, even our apartments. Natalie presents some of her experiments and interventions.

And from nature pervading our cities, check out this installation of a city transported into nature.

A finally, a wine cellar annexe in France that sits beautifully comfortably with its surroundings, built and natural.

James makes the observation that the tree-top walk at Kew isn’t just for kids. Why should it be? It’s a different and interesting way to get close to trees. He was also taken with some interesting ad campaigns featuring birds. Yes, you never know what’ll be next with him, but it seems like it’s bird season. There’s a crowd of eager ducks at MODA in Atlanta – they remind me of the golden frogs that I think Martha Schwartz did – then there are real live angry birds, which remind me of – actually nothing really, but also look like fun, I think.

Annamari posted a bookshelf that gets you reading before you take a book off it. And Anton posted a photo of the water feature at the new phase of Freedom Park.

GREENinc takes the stage

Some of us have also posted lots of other interesting stuff. And some pretty dodgy stuff too – James, were did you find this euthanasia coaster thing? Please take it off. I knew rollercoasters were dangerous, I once went on the cobra at Gold Reef City too many times and now I have a back problem exclusion in my insurance policy.

Ah, now the kombi tent is more like like it.

GREENinc was also featured on Italian design website New Italian Blood. Don’t ask me, I don’t know – maybe you used to have to be young and Italian to get onto it?. Anyway, check it out.

And check out this underground house. It reminds me of the underground houses I used to build as a kid. OK, just a bit more sophisticated.

Please watch the mini-documentary called Taking the Gap by SPACEMATTERS. How come more people aren’t talking about these “fields of matchbox houses” attached to every South African town and their failure to even try to make liveable urban spaces? Why aren’t there urban designers or landscape architects on these projects? Perhaps we have neglected to tell the right people what we can do to help make a better life for all.

Of course we also have potholes – at least these we can give a positive spin. I’ve seen some local ones turned into gardens and even graves, which helps keeps the drivers out.

We didn’t have an ADSL line for 10 days straight! Aaaargh! Oops sorry, that slipped out.

And our server is running on two cylinders and is going to be replaced on the weekend, so we’ll have more fun next week. Noooo! OK, enough already. Let’s keep this upbeat. Servers don’t have cylinders, anyway, do they? My understanding of the insides of these things is a bit vague.

We have soldiered valiantly on, though some things have taken a bit longer than they should, like this newsletter. We even managed to post a few items on the facebook page. Anton has added some drawings for the Botswana Innovation Hub project, you can read about the power of gardens and there are a couple of posts that feature monumental stuff – very different though – one ageing communist concrete, the other something somewhat softer.

As usual, check out the GREENinc facebook site for news.