From Palace Gardens to Paper Mill Site
FAYETTEVILLE, ARK. — A recent workshop took nine University of Arkansas students from the lush gardens surrounding four Renaissance palaces in the Roman countryside to an abandoned paper mill in Subiaco, Italy. Coupling spectacular formal gardens with a desolate industrial site allowed students and professors to study and experiment with the fundamental principles of landscape design: the idea of spatial axis, the use of a reference grid, and the manipulation of natural elements to create comfortable outdoor “rooms.”
Students studied four historic palaces in the castle district east of Rome. They spent the night in the Villa Tuscolana, pictured here. |
Students applied landscape principles and studied at historic villas to plan new uses for this abandoned paper mill in Subiaco, Italy. |
Ryan Evitts imagined a contemporary spin on the Italian grotto. |
Vitali and Fran Beatty, head of the university’s landscape architecture department, organized the 11-day workshop, which was sponsored by Colline Romane, a promotional organization for the Castelli Romani district south of Rome. The students were given full access to four historic villas, some of which are not open to the public.
“It was really interesting to study how they worked with landscape up in the mountains. They had to think about the steep grade,” said Chrissy James, a third-year student from Bentonville.
“It was unbelievable,” said Ike Carroccio, a third-year student from Fayetteville. “You can be at one villa and see another — and see Rome, as well. “
After two days of touring and sketching in the castle district, the group turned its attention to the project site in Subiaco, which offered a very different history than the Roman villas.
Established in the 17th century to produce paper, stamps and copper coins for the papacy, the site was heavily bombed during World War II. It was later rebuilt, but has been abandoned in recent years. Situated next to the Aniene River about 45 miles east of Rome, the site offers views to the hillside town of Subiaco and parkland with ruins of Nero’s villa that date back to the first century A.D.
“It’s a very rich site, and challenged our students. How do you recycle industrial sites into the public realm, without erasing the past?” asked Beatty.
Working in teams, the students developed a range of ideas that would repurpose the approximately 10-acre site as a recreational area with links to the city, river and park. Students Chrissy James, Julie Russell and Ike Carroccio each proposed sequences of parks, promenades and plazas oriented along the river, which Beatty felt was especially appropriate: “The river was the life of the town and the life of the mill site,” she said. Ryan Evitts developed a series of spaces that would lead visitors to a secluded garden with a modern grotto.
“One challenge was trying to capture, understand, and process the scale of the site, and how to revise the space in order to give it a human scale,” Evitts said.
The most successful projects were those that considered and layered different systems: archaeology, ecology, access to the modern city, commerce and production, human behavior and social interaction.
“The layered landscape is a contemporary idea. The students were very good at creating that,” Vitali said.
The workshop concluded with a presentation of the students’ plans to area officials, including Giulio Rossi, mayor of Cervara di Roma, the hillside town that hosted the students during the latter part of the workshop, and Enrico Memeo, president of Monti Simbruini park.
“It was an incredible educational opportunity for our students. They worked hard and came up with a wide range of design ideas for the site,” Beatty said.
Contacts
Fran Beatty,
head, landscape architecture department
School of Architecture
(479) 575-5617 fbeatty@uark.edu
Kendall Curlee,
director of communications
School of
Architecture
(479) 575-4704, kcurlee@uark.edu
Headlines
Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design Presents Fall 2024 Lecture Series Lineup
Through these carefully selected presenters, the Fay Jones School continues to engage with the broad scope of issues, opportunities and challenges that society and the design disciplines confront today.
Honors College to Host Pulse Discussion on the History of Campus Protests
An expert panel moderated by the Democracy Fellows RSO will discuss the history, philosophy, emergency management and legality of campus protests on Sept. 12.
Baxter Joins Animal Science As Equine Instructor, Ranch Horse & Equine Judging Coach
Amanda Baxter, who has extensive experience in 4-H horse contests and clinics, is joining the Department of Animal Science as an equine instructor and head coach of the ranch horse and equine judging teams.
Wang Appointed Associate Editor for Biophysics Reviews
Yong Wang, associate professor of physics at the University of Arkansas, has been named an associate editor of Biophysics Reviews, the journal of the American Institute of Physics.
Data Science Program to Be Led by Previous Engineering Dean While Director Search Begins
Former Dean John English will serve as director while a search for the successor to University Professor Manuel Rosetti, the Data Science Program's inaugural director, is conducted.