Philosophy of the “terza natura”
Humanist and historian Jacopo Bonfadio (1508 – 1550) coined the term “una terza natura”, the Renaissance philosophy of the “third nature” in which neither nature nor art can exist in isolation.
Only through their symbiotic relationship can their consummate form be attained. This unification of art and nature is manifest in landscape gardening. “Terza natura” is the conscious revival of the Golden Age and the supreme realisation of earthly paradise.
Gardens of paradise
Visions of paradise stretching back thousands of years can be found in all cultures. These reflect a deep-seated longing for the perfect place, which every one of us potentially carries within us.
As a landscaper I have the vision, also on a metaphysical level, to bring that sublime place, whatever it means to you, into being.
Over the last two decades I have spent almost a year in Marrakech, working for both private clients and hotels as a garden designer and landscaper. This city, famed for its amazing gardens, has given rise to my particular interest in Arabian paradise gardens, and also, more fundamentally, in visions of paradise in different cultures, which can be found in the Christian West as well as in distant China and Japan (see moss gardens blog).
Rock gardens
A great passion of mine is stones with a particular “charisma”. Be it in a Japanese garden (credentials), an alpine garden, or a Mediterranean dry landscape garden (credentials), I only use stones I have chosen myself which can be assembled, regardless of the design concept, to form coherent rock formations.
Fern gardens
Ferns in general, especially evergreen ferns, are another important area of interest. Since childhood I have been fascinated by these primeval shadow dwellers. All too often they go unnoticed in gardens, and yet they create real background atmosphere. As vice president of “Farnfreunde Schweiz”, a Swiss nationwide society for fern lovers, I have been helping to organise regular excursions relevant areas of interest for almost two decades.
Since childhood I have been equally fascinated by nature and art with all their colourful nuances. I create with my firm Terza Natura bespoke gardens for art lovers with a finely-tuned aesthetic sense.
Beside the Hotel Löwen in Hausen am Albis, Switzerland I can count many artists amongst my clients, including conductor Howard Griffiths, opera tenor Roberto Saccà, Christoph Müller, artistic director of the Menuhin Festival Gstaad, Sophie Faguay, artist and proprietor of the boutique hotel Riad Demeures d’Orient in Marrakech.
Art and nature intertwined
In 2017, my brother Dominik Fischer and I set up a concert series in the Culture Tent in Seleger Moor Park (Switzerland), stemming from my fascination with the alliance of art and nature. In our roles as artistic directors, we will host five concerts during the 2018 season, which runs from May to September. Further information can be found at www.kulturzelt.ch.
Many thanks for your interest – Andreas C. Fischer