The realistic idea to be a dreamer : using utopias in landscape architecture to enable hope for a different future

Abstract: This paper investigates whether utopia can be a lens in landscape architecture to open the imagination toward possible outcomes of the future. The springboard for the subject is a call for hope as it is the main ingredient driving change in our society. While hope is a vital resource for progression, it also demands certain conditions to thrive. This paper is an explo- ration of how utopia in landscape architecture can be a way to understand these conditions. It is made through three separate chapters: first exploring landscape architecture’s correla- tion with utopian hope. Then moving onto the utopian narrative and whether storytelling in landscape architecture can spark hope. Ending with turning to speculative, utopian, scenario building as a means to discover new possibilities in landscape architecture. Each chapter is a puzzle piece gathering literature review, reference projects and re- flections that as a whole strive to explore what a utopian approach in landscape architecture can be. This is combined with experimenting with parts of the gathered theory on chosen site: the Southern Boulevard Périphérique in Paris. Part of the profession as a landscape architect is to propose future alterations. The act of proposing is an act of hoping, since what you propose is a hope that your suggestion will result in something better. Hence, there are common grounds between utopias, who are dreams of something better, and landscape architecture. The utopian perspective can be used to achieve heighten knowledge about what landscape architecture can provide in terms of sparking hope in society. The utopian hope is reliant on landscape architecture not being fully fixed or rigid in its form. For hope to exist it needs space to expand, for transformation to be possible. This means that utopian landscape architecture can never fully be, just become. The way the proposal is narrated can also affect whether it is utopian, in the sense that it opens up the future, or closes it off. The lens provided by utopia can reveal new layers in landscape architecture hence also heightening our ability to understand its complexity. These layers can in turn be made into speculative scenarios, that highlight a current aspect of a site. The spe- culation allows for imaginative prototyping. A playful approach to further expand the notion of what is possible. The power of the utopia lies in its character of being imaginative and provide possibilities. By being a landscape architect that turns to utopia - you are a dreamer. By being a dreamer you are also the highest degree of a realist.