Recreating the ?EUR??,,????'?????<

Dutch landscape architect Joyce van den Berg would like to beautify what was once the deadly no man's land at the East-West German border, but also give it a historic perspective. Rendering: Landscape architect Joyce van den Berg

Amsterdam landscape architect Joyce van den Berg is the curator of a new exhibition?EUR??,,????'?????<

The exhibit examines the exact locations of the former restricted areas around West Berlin, how the land has changed and how to deal with it in the future. This strip of land runs through Berlin and the Brandenburg region, It is 96 miles long and varies in width from only 20 yards or so to 1.5 miles wide.

Within the inner city the border was a concrete wall, but on the outskirts of the city were fences, watchtowers and a ?EUR??,,????'?????<

Most of the land is unused and uncared for. The DAZ calls it ?EUR??,,????'?????<

There were as many as 302 watchtowers on the border, but only five remain. Van den Berg suggests those remain as historic reminders, but that gardens be built around them. Some of the land has definite potential for recreational use. Photo: Nina Kopp

Ms. Van den Berg became interested in the former border land while studying in Berlin 10 years ago. Some call these lands ?EUR??,,????'?????<

There were as many as 302 watchtowers on the border, but only five towers remain standing. Ms. van den Berg wants to keeps those intact, but suggests gardens be planted around them.

These long-neglected pathways were once closely monitored by East German border guards. Although much of the border strip still belongs to the government, some of the land has been sold to private persons, which is one obstacle to landscaping and preserving what some still call the ?EUR??,,????'?????<
Photo: Nina Kopp

There are other historic remnants on the ex-border: escape tunnels that once led from east to west. To mark the tunnel locations, van den Berg suggests beams of light be directed from the West toward the East.

The exhibition includes two bicycle tours along the cycle trail that already exists on Berlin?EUR??,,????'?????< ?EUR??,,????'?????<

We take it back. That?EUR??,,????'?????<

To mark the positions of old escape tunnels along the border, van den Berg suggests beams of light shining from West to East. Rendering: Landscape architect Joyce van den Berg

This exhibition is supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Berlin. The exhibition is part of the theme year ?EUR??,,????'?????<

Exhibit: Neues Licht auf das Sperrgebiet (New Light on No Man?EUR??,,????'?????< Curator: Joyce van den Berg, landscape architect, Van den Berg Landscape, Amsterdam, in collaboration with Nina Kopp
When: July 10 to Aug. 30, 2009
Where: Deutsches Architektur Zentrum, Berlin
Visit www.daz.de/daz/home/de/ for more info.