January 31, 2013
The mother art is architecture. Without an architecture of our own we have no soul of our own civilization. (Frank Lloyd Wright)
Architecture in the 50ies suburbs of Stockholm is becoming more in vogue, maybe due to quite well thought-out and functional floor plans in rather small apartments and houses.
Here in Vallingby, west of the city, the original and – at least among architects – world famous so called ABC-city (ABC approximately translated to Work, Living, Center), planning is on its way to turn it into ABC-city 2.0, with interesting new ideas around ecological buildings, co-op gardens and efficient heating.
Icy Winter Walk, Vallingby; photograph, Christina Rahm Galanis, 2012
For the planners, at least as a marketing and sales theory, living in harmony with Nature is important and it is a fact that there are many beautiful trees here, both in virgin forests towards the lake and planted in park areas.
a man-made garden of eden
In the 1800s, Mallorca’s wine farms almost went out of business due to wine pest. No more wines could be planted for a while, so instead, the farmers planted almond trees and about 5 million of them.
Almond Trees in February; iPhone sketch, Christina Rahm Galanis 2013
mallorquin snow
A more romantic explanation of how the Mallorcan almond trees came about is this:
Once upon a time, a Norwegian princess became the wife of a Mallorquin King. The princess (now turned queen), was inconsolable longing for her northern snowy landscapes. To comfort her, the king planted almond trees all over his land, and when they went into bloom it reminded her of the Norwegian snow.
In the end, all became well.
That’s it. Simply as that.
more trees and architecture
Ice and snow is wonderful for a month or two, but next week will be from the road, at more southern latitudes.
If you are interested in art history and art nouveau architecture in Mallorca, there is news for you about every other day now, for a couple of weeks, at
http://onthespiritualinart.wordpress.com
Christina
Tree from Below; photograph, Christina Rahm Galanis 2005
1. why art
Did you know that Gaudí worked in Mallorca? Read more here…
2. my art
Portfolio of ART and PHOTOGRAPHY
3. buy art
ORIGINALS
30% discount on all images available in the store
upcoming exhibition
Small show coming up in the local library in Blackeberg, west of Stockholm in March. More info to come.
did you know that…
…the Mediterranean climate and low water content means Mallorcan almonds have a higher fat content than almonds from other countries, reaching 60% in some cases, and have a sweeter flavor?
WithFlyingColor 