The Domain of Chaumont-Sur-Loire, France
.2 ha
2019
Drawn into a labyrinth of gold and silver, visitors move between emergency blankets that reflect their figures, as well as those of the plants. One side is gold and at its base is a geometric arrangement of warm weather plants. The other side is silver highlighted by a water feature, with aquatic plants dotted here and there. The dry garden and the water garden symbolize the elements unique to the Earth. It is neither a sacred place for the dead nor an ideal for the living.
On the contrary, this garden questions life on Earth and draws attention to the danger our planet is in. We are in a world living on borrowed time. The paths represent the attempts made up humanity to undergo an environmental awakening. The emergency blankets also evoke the often strenuous migrations of people, plants and animals who, as they move, seek a more suitable paradise where they can protect themselves. An allegory of contemporary tragedies, this garden implicitly poses the question: do we still deserve our paradise?