Classic with exotic accents

Search for a symbiosis

How do you plant a Pavillon?

For years, the sprawling park with more than 1000 trees between the Dreirosen Bridge and the Campus was allowed to grow undisturbed. The construction of the Pavillon marked a significant change to the original concept. But the landscape architects were on hand to help.

Text by Michael Mildner, photos by Adriano A. Biondo

Tree by tree, a new landscape...

Table of contents

Classic with exotic accents

Search for a symbiosis

Published on 30/05/2022

Just a few decades ago, trees were a rarity on the St. Johann industrial site in Basel. More tolerated than consciously planted, they grew in niches next to railway tracks and closely spaced laboratory buildings, production halls and office blocks. At the time, large-scale parks were unheard of.

This changed with the Campus master plan, which was designed in 2001 by the Italian urban planner and architect Vittorio Magnago Lampugnani, who included natural spaces in his building concept. Since then, several green areas have been created, which are not only a feast for the eyes, but also help employees relax and unwind or give them the opportunity to hold informal meetings – be it in a secluded wood or sunbathing on the spacious meadows.

One of the largest parks is the so-called Park South, which has formed the southern border of the Campus since 2007. With over 1000 trees, the park represents a green oasis with a colorful fauna and flora that invites you to stroll and relax.

Pristine landscape

The importance of the park goes far beyond the mere accumulation of trees and shrubs. Here, an attempt was made to recreate an early landscape that is now hidden under dense settlement structures: the original landscape of the Basel Rhine Valley, which was formed by glaciers and rivers.

The project was developed by Vogt landscape architects from Zurich in cooperation with the general planner team under the direction of Stauffer Roesch landscape architects from Basel. Both offices have a great deal of experience in planning and implementing urban open spaces.

In addition to Park South, Stauffer Roesch implemented many of the larger green spaces on the Novartis Campus, including two large parks and the Physic Garden, which boasts a collection of medicinal plants to remind visitors of the origins of medicine. Vogt, on the other hand, were responsible for the design of the green space in front of the Gehry Building on the Novartis Campus as well as Rahul Mehrotra’s laboratory building, which stands out for its innovative green façade and lush interior spaces.

...is being created.

Classic with exotic accents

For the design of the Park South, plants were chosen that correspond to the original Rhine Valley landscape, including classic species such as Norway maple, copper beech and silver birch trees in the forest area. However, exotic species have been added too, including Japanese flowering cherries and Persian beech trees, which show an impressive autumnal color.

“We didn’t want to create an ornamental character or a garden atmosphere but aimed at interpreting a well-known landscape in which trees and shrubs can sometimes die,” says Lars Ruge, explaining the choice of trees. “Although we haven’t planted any flowers, there’s always something blooming in the park. In spring, you can see a white sea of sweet woodruff blossoms, as well as wood anemone, clematis and fruit trees and a variety of perennials and climbing plants.”

The 2.5-hectare section of Park South was completed in just 12 months, from the initial draft to the finished landscape. When Novartis finally took over the port area from the city of Basel in 2011, the way was clear for the expansion of the park to the waterfront promenade.

With this addition, a total of six hectares were available for the park, which is equivalent to more than six football fields. This development also enabled the construction of the Rhine riverbank public pathway. Work on the enlarged parking area was completed in 2016. Since then, the plants have developed into a natural habitat under expert care.

Visibility as a need

“Unlike building architecture, landscape architecture is always a continuation,” says Beat Roesch, reflecting on his many years of experience. “Plants have to grow, socialize, so, as landscape architects, we are subject to a dynamic development.”

However, long-term planning is not always possible, and surprises are not uncommon, especially when it comes to large plots of land. “With an area of six hectares, you have to expect something to happen at some point,” says Roesch.

The construction of the Pavillon was one such surprise, which has kept Lars Ruge busy since 2020. Although Ruge feels a certain melancholy that the centerpiece of the former park concept is now being transformed, he describes his feelings as follows: “It’s not easy if you want to plant a building in a park in such a way that coexistence results in cooperation. After all, it’s not just about integrating the building into the landscape. The building also entails additional elements such as accessibility, access for the fire service, façade cleaning, bicycle stands and so on.”

The walls along the hollow way underneath the Pavillon, which were gray back in the winter of 2022, will be covered with lush greenery by spring.

Search for a symbiosis

To ensure that the Pavillon could be optimally integrated, the landscape architects were in close contact with architect Michele De Lucchi, and all the local companies involved in the construction. This also meant that there were occasional intense discussions about the interaction of buildings and landscape, for example when the architect’s object-related demands collided with the nature-related concepts of the park designers.

However, the landscape architects remained focused on their task, even though there were major challenges, such as the fact that the reflective roof casts an artificially bluish shimmer onto the clay wall under the Pavillon. In addition, a wide range of natural surfaces combining functionality and aesthetics were tested for the access routes to the Pavillon in order to find the best possible solution for harmoniously combining the park and the building.

A dynamic process

“A lot of things around the Pavillon had to be reinterpreted,” says Lars Ruge. “To do this, we expanded our family of materials and plants without losing sight of the context, and in doing so, we constantly asked ourselves: How much variance is allowed to ensure that the original narrative of a walk through the landscape of the Rhine Valley can still be experienced in a credible way?”

Ruge and Roesch are convinced that the Pavillon and park will grow together. But good things take time, especially when nature is involved. “We expect it to take three to five years for this symbiosis to develop,” says Beat Roesch. “It is a dynamic process that specially trained experts continuously nurture and support. They have a significant influence on the formation of a coherent overall picture and on the thriving symbiosis of our park-Pavillon.”

Visitors will ultimately decide whether this attempt is successful or not. So far, the other parks on the Novartis Campus have not disappointed either the company’s employees or its guests. And this should be no different here, even if it will take a few years for the landscape interventions to be fully integrated.

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