On the side of fire

Rites, visions, cultivation practices in the landscape

International Landscape Study Days

2023, nineteenth edition

 

The 19th edition of the International Landscape Study Days, the key moment of reflection and public debate on the lines of research of the Fondazione, will be held in Treviso on 23 and 24 February 2023.

 

This time the theme will focus on the word “fire”. At a time when fires, whose magnitude and intensity were unimaginable only a few years ago, rage throughout the world and appear to announce an impending Apocalypse, it is clear to us that, paradoxically, the most violent blazes are caused partly by the absence of controlled fires – whether their origin be natural or human – which landscapes had grown accustomed to, and by the resulting ecological disaster and the enormous amount of flammable material which has built up. By the same token, spectacular yet destructive volcanic eruptions are threatening more and more inhabited areas, bringing entire regions to their knees and putting people’s lives in danger.

Given the situation, where once again human behaviour has contributed not in small measure to the problem, we need to address the issue of fire when debating the future of the Earth, adopting a new approach based on the notion of living in harmony and not in conflict. Our lives would be inconceivable without fire, so we need to reconcile this coexistence with ideas for projects and initiatives to care for the landscape which take into account ecology, draw on past knowledge and revive traditional practices in an innovative way and have the courage to replace fossil fuels with other energy sources. We need to adopt a new approach and develop it by dialoguing with the world of natural and human sciences and the arts.

 

After two on-line editions, the International Landscape Study Days will once more be held “face-to-face” in Treviso, at the Palazzo Bomben auditorium, and in live streaming on the video and social channels of the Fondazione.

 

The programme, edited by Luigi Latini (director of Fondazione Benetton and professor of Landscape Architecture at Iuav University of Venice) and Simonetta Zanon (head of landscape research and projects of Fondazione Benetton), will be divided into four sessions – Rites and representations, Paradoxes, Under the volcano, Cultivations – that will be preceded on February 17 by the online preview conference Cultivated by Fire.