PROJECTS
The Kirstenbosch Gardens’ Boomslang is a perfect pairing of nature and technology.
Nothing can prepare one for the experience that is the Boomslang. This is not a structure to be looked at and photographed; its magic is only revealed to those who walk on it. It is dynamic and not static, revealing to the user a new delight and sensory experience with each of its twists and turns.
This 130m long treetop walkway, which winds its way through the Arboretum at the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, was initiated as a centenary project. Mark Thomas, of Mark Thomas Architects, explains that the project was an engineering and architectural collaboration between him and Henry Fagan, of Henry Fagan & Associates, the project engineers.“ Every decision was made jointly only after full approval by both parties,” says Thomas.“ On top of this excellent engineering service, I was assisted by Chris Bisset, an incredible young architect and filmmaker.”
This kind of structure, essentially a bridge, has been the focus of many famous and illustrious examples all over the world over long periods of time. In many instances, these have become icons in the popular imagination as well as benchmarks of technological expertise and innovation. The Boomslang displays many of the most positive characteristics of these famous examples. In basic terms, most of these inspiring bridge structures, like the Boomslang, find their poetic expression in the lack of excess. Each structural member is used optimally in terms of its own inherent material and structural capacities. Together it forms a whole that is more than the sum of its parts. If humans observe nature very closely, while trying to mimic and understand its complexity and elegance – this is what they would find. This is also in stark contrast to mankind’ s propensity for excess.
// FEB / MARCH 2017 21