Thousands and thousands of years ago the surface of the earth was but one supercontinent known as Pangea. Ecosystems once linked with others are today kept apart by oceans and seas after being broken into splinters. From this separation we have developed different cultures and unique environments that have defined the way we live. Yet in our search for knowledge and entertainment one of the few things that unite these worlds can be found within zoos were we can interact and observe animals that are not indigenous to where we live.
Courtesy of TN Plus & Beckmann N’Thépé
Founded in 1865, the Saint Petersburg zoo is the oldest zoological park of Russia. However as with most parks, it suffers from a cruel lack of space as it is located in the heart of the historical town center. The new zoological park designed by Bruno Tanant and Jean Christophe Nani of landscape design firm TN PLUS together with Aldric Bechmann and Françoise N’Thépé of architects Beckmann N’Thépé, is planned to range over 300 hectacres on the town’s outskirts, escaping the high population density of the urban area. The project will thus preserve a large stretch of land, and implement an environmentally beneficial approach.
Courtesy of TN Plus & Beckmann N’Thépé
Inspired by the Paleolithic Pangea, the project offers a symbolic sample of every continent in an attempt to create the illusion of a joined supercontinent. The park will be made of circular islands, connected by bridges, with each island representing South East Asia, Africa, Australia, South America, North America and Eurasia, the two latter being linked with each other by the pack ice of the Arctic Pole. The chosen site enjoys a profuse water supply, and hence is particularly fitted for such an insular organization of the various environments. The circular form of the islands is also replicated in the woven structural form of the domed greenhouses dotting the park in various locations adding to the environment requirements and the green consciousness already induced from zoological parks.
