Landscape Architect, activist and founder of Landscape Alliance Ireland, Terry O’Regan
shares some surprising French perspectives on Ireland’s landscape
The definition of landscape in the European Landscape Convention, which is now also part
and parcel of our planning and development legislation, features the word ‘perceived’. That
has always given me some cause for unease as it seems to separate the cerebral from the reality. A recent illuminating experience has not quite eliminated that unease, but it certainly gives us all some food for thought.
At the end of January, Ireland hosted an exploratory visit of experts from the French Ministry of Sustainable Development. The visit, initiated by our French colleagues, was prompted by the fact that since May 2015 Ireland has a national landscape strategy and the French authorities, despite having a wide range of measures in place that deliver on the aims and objectives of the European Landscape Convention, do not in fact have an overarching landscape strategy. To inform their deliberations they are visiting a number of states with such strategies in place.
Assisted by our own Department of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural, and Gaeltacht Affairs they experienced an intensive three-day programme of meetings and site visits that concluded with a short day visit to Cork, jointly hosted by Brendan O’Sullivan of the Centre for Planning Education & Research at University College Cork and myself representing
Landscape Alliance Ireland.
As is the nature of such visits, both sides gained from the exchange of experiences and methodologies. But what I found particularly interesting was their different perception of
our landscape.
They were very taken with the number of large mature natural trees in the rural landscape. Now I would have thought on my visits to France that they had a landscape very generously endowed with trees, but they said yes, they do have plenty of trees in their towns and cities but they are inevitably pruned and contained, whilst in the rural areas
the trees are typically contained and controlled in defined woodlands and forests.
The National Landscape Forum 2017 organised by Landscape Alliance Ireland is provisionally programmed for late June and it is hoped to convene the forum in the Midlands in partnership with local communities. Check their website www.laiireland.com for updates. |
They also remarked on the diversity of paint colours applied to houses in our landscape, enquiring if people are free to choose whatever colour they desire. Apparently, in France, you may be told by the authorities what colour paint to use.
Our lack of footpaths along roads in rural areas was also remarked on, with the rider that in France this tends to be overdone and to urbanise the landscape. Maybe we failed to show them more of our sometimes ‘overcooked’ roadside walls and balustrades?
Our itinerary in Cork was rather limited due to time constraints, but a short walk around Kinsale elicited the observation that it was a vibrant small town with a wide range of shops not just offering tourist fare, but also ‘butchers and bakers and candlestick makers’ and more outlets providing for the practical needs of the local population.
We ended our journey at the ‘no entry’ gateway to the Old Head of Kinsale golf course as an example of what is perceived by many in Cork and elsewhere as a failure in our planning process due to the lack of free public access to the lighthouse and coastline. As we stood there looking at the incongruity of a barb wire entangled heritage structure of
ancient castle walls and a ruined tower house, I could not help remarking that Ireland was well ahead of Trump’s Mexican wall; whatever about his Mexican wave hairstyle, we have had a wall in Kinsale for decades designed to keep out not only Irish visitors and perhaps the odd Mexican, but now some French visitors as well. Maybe it is time to give the Battle of Kinsale another go.
That said, I now look at our somewhat haphazard but occasionally ‘free’ landscape with a somewhat different perception. The reality that will never dawn on The Donald is that we will only progress when we are open to seeing the issues through other’s perceptions.
“Vive la différence and Olé, Olé, Olé, Olé, Olé…” ✽
TERRY O’REGAN, B Agr Sc Hort(Hons), FILI, MIoH, founder of Landscape Alliance Ireland, has served the landscape industry in Ireland for some 45 years and advanced the intent and aims of the European Landscape Convention for
some 20 years.
He now divides his time between providing landscape
consultancy services in Munster and working as a Council of Europe international landscape and heritage expert in Kosovo. He continues to promote and refine his ‘jargon-free’ landscape circle methodology and is currently leading a pilot study on its use at local and
regional administrative levels in Kosovo.
The LAI website will shortly be relaunched as www.lai-ireland.com. Contact Terry at terryjoregan@gmail.com or 021 487 1460.
