Foundation of the Network of European Landscape Architecture Archives (NELA) in Ås, 2019, © NELA
Since 2019, the Network of European Landscape Architecture Archives (NELA) has enabled an international collaboration between archivists, researchers, educators, and practitioners in the context of landscape architecture history.
Understanding our history and cultural heritage will make us better equipped to respond to the major challenges of the 21st century—such as climate change, population growth, biodiversity loss, inequality, and urbanization. At NELA we want to contribute to a collective memory of landscape architecture heritage by connecting various archives, exchanging knowledge, and promoting research and education centred on landscape architecture history. We seek to raise awareness of the valuable archival material relating to landscape architecture. The confrontation with one’s own history goes far beyond the preservation of individual objects.
Foundation of NELA
NELA was established in 2019 at the European Council of Landscape Architecture Schools (ECLAS) conference in Ås, Norway. The foundation was initiated by three landscape architecture archives, Archive of Norwegian Landscape Architecture (ANLA) at NMBU in Ås, Norway (Annegreth Dietze-Schirdewahn, Lei Gao), Archiv für Schweizer Landschaftsarchitektur (ASLA) at OST in Rapperswil, Switzerland (Sophie von Schwerin, Simon Orga), and Archiv Österreichischer Landschaftsarchitektur (LArchiv) at BOKU University in Vienna, Austria (Lilli Lička, Ulrike Krippner, Roland Tusch). Since then, many other institutions as well as landscape and heritage experts have joined, forming a network that spans the whole of Europe. To become a member of NELA, a formal application is required.
Contributing to and preserving cultural memory through archival work
Archives play a key role in developing an understanding of the history of landscape architecture by collecting, preserving, curating, and teaching it and serving as indispensable partners in the preservation and restoration of its heritage. They are regarded as institutions of cultural memory, where information remains materially accessible for possible use. Without institutions that are willing and know how to collect such information, it will be lost forever. We are committed to enhancing the standards and accessibility of existing landscape architecture archives in Europe, while striving to establish new archives and offering mutual support to one another. The Museum of English Rural Life (MERL), which is a member of NELA, gives an interesting introduction to their landscape collection:
The Landscape Collections at The Museum of English Rural Life
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vL7b0BUWa8, © MERL
Further information about archival work and its relevance for research, education and practice can be found in the following publications:
Roland Tusch et al.: “Archiving Landscape: A European Network to Address the Current Challenges Facing Landscape Architecture Archives”. In: Architectural Histories 12/1 (2024), 1–9, https://doi.org/10.16995/ah.10354.
Lilli Lička et al.: “Building up Historical Continuity: Landscape Architecture Archives in Education”. In: Diedrich Bruns, Stefanie Hennecke (eds.): The Routledge Handbook of Landscape Architecture Education (New York: Routledge, 2023)
Our intentions
We are seeking to deepen the understanding of historical open spaces and the profession of landscape architecture. This opens up new perspectives on historical and contemporary designs and strategies. We also aim to enhance the cooperation between landscape architecture archives, researchers, scholars, and practitioners across Europe and to increase awareness and appreciation of the valuable cultural heritage kept in the archives. In keeping with these intentions, our activities comprise the following:
- Exchange: report and discuss activities, challenges, current issues, practical experiences, and events in monthly online meetings
- Educate: create and provide knowledge through research projects, publications, and blogs, by participating in conferences, organizing exhibitions, disseminating information in the media, teaching students, and integrating archives in lectures
- Propagate: support each other’s activities and argumentation to found, improve, and enlarge landscape architecture archives in Europe
- Develop: detect, discuss, and develop strategies to keep archive standards as high as possible both in technical terms (e.g. digitization) and with regard to accessibility
- Communicate: contact and exchange with other archives, networks, professional organizations, and individuals