Walls of Suzhou Gardens: A Photographic Journey

A lyrical portrait of texture, light and the passage of time at the Suzhou gardens, from the author of The Intimacy of Making. At the Classical Gardens of Suzhou in China, surface transforms into space; walls become landscapes. In her journey through this UNESCO World Heritage Site, Swiss French photographer Helene Binet captures the traces of environmental influences on built structures. Her impressive series of photography shows how weather and time have turned blank walls into vivid depictions of nature. In Binet’s images, architecture becomes the frame for imaginary landscapes. By interweaving foreground and background, the artist tells stories that shift between the two dimensions of the plane and the three dimensions of space. In an accompanying essay, architect and writer Juhani Pallasmaa captures the dream-like quality of the photographs and emphasises Binet’s skill of balancing precision and vagueness to create images that stimulate the viewer’s imagination. AUTHOR: Helene Binet was born in 1959 and is of both Swiss and French descent. She studied photography in Rome where she grew up. In 1986 she turned towards architectural photography, working with Zaha Hadid, Daniel Libeskind and many more. She is based in London where she works as an independent photographer. SELLING POINTS: . The lens of photographer Helene Binet opens up a completely novel view of the Classical Gardens of Suzhou in China . Her dream-like pictures reveal the impact of weather and time on built structures 31 illustrations