torsanlorenzo

L A C U L T U R A D E L V E R D E U R B A N O
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Freedom Park is a project mandated by President Nelson Mandela after the fall of Apartheid. It was conceived as
a narrative, a ‘journey to freedom’ informed by traditional African culture and Indigenous Knowledge Systems
(IKS). Five key elements, //hapo, Isivivane, Sikumbuto, Moshate, and Tiva form the basis of this narrative and
are linked by a wheelchair friendly pathway that winds its way up the hill. Freedom Park is located on a quartzite
ridge, a vitally important regional asset characterised by a unique composition of plant species, rich in biodiversity.
The landscaping embraces the concept of a natural, symbolic garden with many different spaces and
places, which forms the setting for the various elements as described above.
The design is also informed by traditional forms, languages and principles of African architecture and space.
Curved lines and rounded forms are typical elements. Natural and local materials were used as much as possible,
and plants that have medicinal, ecological and cultural significance where chosen to form and adorn spaces.
Water was extensively used in the project because of its vitally important implication in African traditional culture.
The symbolism of water is common to all tribes and plays a significant role not only in African belief systems
but also in Western thought and religion as it relates to the notion of ‘spiritual healing’.
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To mark Freedom Park from a distance a noticeable vertical element was designed into Sikumbuto. The idea of
a rising line of stainless steel ‘reeds’, was embraced to symbolize communication between earth and heaven. In
African tradition reeds are used to communicate with the deity through the ancestors.
South African landscape architecture has few examples where African culture and landscape design inform each
other to create a place that engages people spiritually and confronts them about their perceptions of the past
and visions for the future. The design challenge was to introduce people to African culture, symbolism and spiritual
meaning through a landscape narrative that expresses the place in an abstract manner – so as not to alienate
any one cultural group. In seeking to meet this challenge, the landscape architects integrated Freedom
Park’s physical elements into an already beautiful site to create a landscape that resonates with universal symbolic
and spiritual meaning – yet which is unashamedly founded in African cultural expression.
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