In this case, the architects have skilfully combined a series of naturalistic landscapes – with over 100,000 species of native plants, many of which were being used for the first time in a “landscaped” context – with sculptural and artistic elements that represent the contrasts and differences in scale that are typical of inland Australia. This explains the central role of the Escarpment Wall Garden, a 90-metre-long sculpture in rusted metal created by Greg Clark that recalls the outback’s dramatic changes of scenery. Behind the experience of the Australian Garden lies a message concerning environmental sustainability, both in the explicit aesthetic celebration of aridity and scarcity of water and in its use of a wide and varied range of local and “cheap” materials such as red sand, limestone, tree bark and gravel. Stefano Gulmanelli
