France Culture - Gardens to reflect on peace

A garden in the middle of old trenches

American landscape architect David Simonson was able to imagine his American garden, located east of Reims, in the town of Souain-Perthes-lès-Hurlus (51), at the foot of the imposing monument to the dead of the Navarin farm. Another monument to the dead, dedicated to American soldiers, is located a few kilometres away, the Blanc Mont monument. Participating in this initiative is a great pride for this Californian, settled in France for more than ten years, whose grandfather worked in the Navy in San Diego.

The site being in the middle of old trenches, David Simonson thought of his future garden as a succession of trenches, more open, "a garden of memory where one can project oneself into the universe that once existed". An immersion all the more powerful as the place is close to an army training center and is therefore regularly overflown by military aircraft, sometimes shots are also heard... The old conflict zone was never cleaned up, it was impossible to dig in the land for this garden. So, David Simonson imagined it slightly raised, with different slopes that for the moment only look like a series of earth clusters.

"This garden is a representation of the trenches. They are normally narrow, narrow. We wanted to open these trenches. It is the garden of peace, so we are more in traffic, freedom, open spaces, to enjoy the site. Talus are a metaphor, they can represent countries or people, distinct by their form or composition. Peace is also about living together. So, the plants that grow on the slopes will be connected to each other after a while”, says Simonson. The landscaper also wanted to revive a probably extinct nature, "one can imagine that there was a flower that was there, that was erased", so David Simonson used only local plants to compose his garden.

American landscape architect David Simonson presents his American garden, thought like the ancient trenches that surround it

© Radio France - Fiona Moghaddam