Town of trees and gardens
The major design project (part of the MA I am undertaking at Birmingham City University) is beginning to take shape. It is set in Kidderminster, a town with a range of problems familiar to many of us. Kidderminster has a wonderful setting along the valley of the River Stour and the Staffordshire and Worcestershire canal. However, an industrial past and post-industrial present have left the town centre disconnected from its landscape setting and dominated by supermarket buildings and car parks.
This extract from a beautifully crafted map of 1753 shows a very different Kidderminster: a town where trees and gardens abound and every detail evokes a green and cultivated place. The challenge of the major design project is to find a 21st century approach to restore Kidderminster’s relationship with the landscape.
