Novartis Campus Park

Basel, Switzerland

Vogt Landscape Architects

2006 – 2016


A hidden glacial landscape as inspiration


Fig.1 Vogt conceived the plan as "a scale model of the prehistoric Rhine valley". (Image: worldheritagegermany.com)
Fig.2 The wedge-shaped park runs slightly down to the current course of the Rhine and is made up of three terraces: forest, meadow, and swamp. (Image: vogt-la.com)
Fig.3 The park design lies between the natural and the artificial. (Image: vogt-la.com)
Fig.4 The lowest terrace consists of swamp, with iris, aquatic plants, birch, and poplar. (Image: vogt-la.com)

Pharmaceutical company Novartis transformed a former industrial site into a campus for its more than 10,000 employees, an "international headquarters for innovation, knowledge and meeting". ( i ) The buildings were designed by Tadao Ando, ​​Frank Gehry and SANAA, the outdoor space by Peter Walker and Günther Vogt.


The Swiss Vogt designed the Campus Park, located on the south side of the site, directly on the Rhine. The park design is inspired by local geology. On old geological maps Vogt found a hidden landscape of the Basler Rhine Valley formed by glaciers and rivers, now covered with settlements, agriculture and other evidence of human activity. ( ii ) He mentioned: "Interpretation of the characteristic landforms of this ‘hidden landscape’, including terraces, dendritic drainage and abandoned river channels, shaped the design". ( iii ) In short: he conceived the plan as "a model of the prehistoric Upper Rhine valley". ( iv )


Vogt wanted to make those old terraces and river runs experienceable above the ground. The wedge-shaped park runs slightly down to the current course of the Rhine and is made up of three terraces: Wald, Wiese and Sümpf. A native forest (Wald) has been planted on the upper terrace. The next terrace is a large lawn (Wiese) with exotics and forest plants. On this terrace there are paths that refer to another landscape phenomenon: those of the Hohlwegen, narrow roads cut into the earth, overgrown by dense vegetation. The lowest terrace consists of swamp (Sümpf), with iris, aquatic plants, birch and poplar. ( v )


For those who know nothing about research and sources of inspiration, Campus Park is simply a pleasant place - attractive when it is busy, attractive when it is empty. The park design is in the middle between the natural and the artificial. The translation is not immediately visible.





( i ) https://2x4.org/work/87/novartis-campus-tour/, consulted October 2017.
( ii ) https://www.vogt-la.com/en/project/novartis-campus-park-basel, consulted October 2017.
( iii ) Alice Foxley, Distance and Engagement, Lars Müller Publishers, 2010, p.140.
( iv ) Alice Foxley, Distance and Engagement, Lars Müller Publishers, 2010, p.135.
( v ) https://www.vogt-la.com/en/project/novartis-campus-park-basel, consulted October 2017.