Between seeing and living : a series of landscape interventions for enhancing the living heritage of Arniston/Waenhuiskrans

Abstract

The satisfaction of immediate needs, such as thirst and a need for shelter, often becomes the driving force of one’s movements when walking. The location of places of this nature often plays a key role in where people gather and spend most of their time. In the case of a small fishing town, such as Arniston in the Western Cape, spaces of this nature occur in isolation from key landmarks, disabling the opportunity to truly interact with the whole place, its heritage and its people.

This dissertation deals with landscape heritage management and the challenge of identifying new strategies for achieving sustainable heritage tourism in cultural landscapes with “Living Heritage” (Court 2015). The International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) claims that one such challenge is implementing strategies to ensure that cultural landscapes, that are still operational, remain and grow in operation, without losing its intrinsic value (Court 2015). In doing so, the method of heritage management must be adapted to accommodate current and possible future narratives.

The spatial challenge of how touristic activities interact with heritage spaces and places in coastal fishing villages in South Africa will be highlighted. A specific focus will be placed on the spatial challenge of how one interacts with heritage artefacts, places and spaces along the route to the coastline in Arniston. Hypernaturalisation of the cultural landscape of Arniston in the Western Cape will be proposed in the form of a tourism movement sequence. This will guide interaction with Arniston’s landscape, its people and artefacts before and when one reaches the coastline.

Afrikaans: Die bevrediging van onmiddellike behoeftes, soos dors en 'n behoefte aan skuiling, word dikwels die dryfkrag van 'n mens se bewegings wanneer jy loop. Die ligging van plekke van hierdie aard speel dikwels 'n sleutelrol in waar mense bymekaarkom en die meeste van hul tyd spandeer. In die geval van 'n klein vissersdorpie, soos Arniston in die Wes-Kaap, kom ruimtes van hierdie aard afsonderlik van belangrike landmerke voor, wat die geleentheid het om werklik met die hele plek, sy erfenis en sy mense om te gaan, skakel.

Hierdie proefskrif handel oor die bestuur van landskapserfenis en die uitdaging om nuwe strategieë te identifiseer vir die bereiking van volhoubare erfenistoerisme in kulturele landskappe met "Living Heritage" (Court 2015). Die Internasionale Sentrum vir die bestudering van die behoud en herstel van kulturele eiendom (ICCROM) beweer dat een so 'n uitdaging die implementering van strategieë is, om te verseker dat kulturele landskappe, wat nog steeds werksaam is, bly en groei, sonder om die intrinsieke waarde daarvan te verloor (Court 2015). Sodoende moet die metode van erfenisbestuur aangepas word om huidige en moontlike toekomstige vertellings te akkommodeer.

Die ruimtelike uitdaging van hoe toeristiese aktiwiteite in wisselwerking is met erfenisruimtes en plekke in vissersdorpies aan die kus in Suid-Afrika, word belig. Daar sal spesifiek gefokus word op die ruimtelike uitdaging om te kommunikeer met erfenisvoorwerpe, plekke en ruimtes langs die roete na die kuslyn in Arniston. Hipnaturalisering van die kulturele landskap van Arniston in die Wes-Kaap word voorgestel in die vorm van 'n toerisme-bewegingsreeks. Dit sal interaksie met Arniston se landskap, sy mense en artefakte lei voor en wanneer 'n mens die kuslyn bereik.