I have been wanting to use a gabion retaining wall for a really long time, but in a very particular way – and one that I have never seen before. Architecturally, you might be familiar with gabions in the Dominus Winerydesign by Pritzker prize winning architects Herzog & De Meuron, where the building’s exterior is made of modular gabions of wire mesh containing masses of locally quarried stone (basalt) of varying shapes and sizes – a technology commonly used in river engineering.
A gabion is a basket or cage filled with earth or rocks and used especially in building a support or abutment. They are typically used in civil engineering projects to control soil erosion around heavily sloped projects. But I have been wanting to use them as low walls where I could allow plants to find there way into the gabion and allow the wall to disappear over time into the landscape. Turns out, it would look just like this:
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When I was brought out to Spain courtesy of the Association of Ceramic Tile Manufacturers of Spain (ASCER), a group who promote the general and common interests of the ceramic industry, I found that someone else had used them they way I have always wanted. These pictures were taken at the Zaragoza EXPO, and it just reinforced my opinion that my idea was a good one.
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These low walls were interesting in a way that I can’t adequately describe. I hope that I am not alone in thinking that this is a good idea.
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