With: Topotek 1 Gesellschaft für Landschaftsarchitekten mbH

The cultural construct of nature could not exist without its corrupt adversary – the city. The days of this perceived clean and happy divorce are however long departed, suburbia being the relationship’s bitter scourge; nonetheless, this compartmentalized and romantic concept persists where urbanity and nature are dichotomous elements on opposing ends of the spectrum. Taking this notion to task, five architects and landscape architects will discuss the perception of this inherent duality in an existence where customary spatial typologies are evermore intertwined and increasingly indistinguishable. In so doing, the conversation will aim to deconstruct the cultural and societal conceptions of nature, picking apart the confines of the definition to explore the possibilities of expanded and alternate interpretations. Looking through this deconstructed lens, architect and landscape architect will consider possibilities for greater synthesis or perhaps for greater disassociation in the messy (re)union of city and nature.