VÉGÉTAL: Ville et Nature

The exhibition "Arboretum, the Tree as Architecture,” designed by arc en rêve centre d'architecture in 2021, will be presented at the Maison de l'architecture de Poitiers in Nouvelle-Aquitaine as part of the VÉGÉTAL cycle. The exhibition includes the commissioned video, “The Finely- Textured Canopy of Modernism,” by Ron Henderson with Sergio Salgado and Sarah Hanson of Furnace FPS.

How do city and nature meet today? Are trees architectural elements in their own right? How to think of the city and its landscape in harmony with the plant world? From May 2 to July 30, 2023, the VÉGÉTAL cycle invites you to discover, survey, experiment, and reflect on the question.

Trees occupy an important place in the history of architecture. On the one hand, they have been for centuries the source of one of the main building materials. On the other hand, they are one of the fundamental elements of architectural design and urban development projects: planted and maintained in the gardens, parks and spaces of our cities or used to influence the sensory perception of residential, tertiary or public buildings. Sometimes preserved, sometimes integrated into different operations, trees often resonate with the intentions of architects, town planners and landscape designers. Nowadays, their massive deployment in architectural and urban development projects responds to new social and political programs.

Based on a selection of projects and ideas from different eras and geographies, “Arboretum” offers a reflection around the tree in order to reaffirm the architectural nature of this element. The exhibition invites you to stroll through the heart of a forest of architectural projects, realized or dreamed of.