Defiant Gardens
Posted By: Liz Goodrich
Date Posted: 4/14/2009
Kenneth I. Helphand, Professor of Landscape Architecture at the University of Oregon and author of Defiant Gardens: Making Gardens in Wartime, presents two programs this weekend as part of the 2009 Oregon Reads project. He speaks at the Bend Public Library on Saturday, April 18 and again on Sunday, April 19 at the Sisters Public Library. Both programs begin at 2:00 pm and are free and open to the public.
Helphand says wartime gardens are dramatic examples of what he has termed “defiant gardens,” garden spaces created in extreme social, political, economic, or cultural conditions. During his presentation he will highlight gardens of war in the 20th century, including gardens built behind the trenches in WWI, in the Warsaw and other ghettos of WWII, and in the Japanese-American internment camps. Helphand proves that gardens are far more than peaceful respites from the outside world, and analyzes why people continue to create natural spaces in the face of trauma and upheaval.
Helphand is a graduate of Harvard’s School of Design and was the recipient of distinguished teaching awards from the University of Oregon and the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture. He has guest lectures at dozens of universities and is regular visiting professor at Technion – the Israel Institute of Technology. He is the author of numerous articles and reviews on topics in landscape history and theory.
People with disabilities needing accommodations (alternative formats, seating or auxiliary aides) should contact Liz at 312-1032.