Sensorial tour in the Historical Garden of Castrelos

Vigo, Pontevedra, Galicia.
Special mention / Diploma in the category Education, training and awareness-raising / Education, training and skills in the year 2012.

Dating of the building: 17th century.

Applicant: Belinda Besada and Marister Failde.

Reason for the award :

The Jury has valued the effort made to adapt the visit to this garden for people with vision difficulties through tactile and olfactory stimuli making possible the perception of its values, using innovative procedures.

  • © Besada y Failde BMJ Arquitectos SCP
  • © Besada y Failde BMJ Arquitectos SCP
  • © Besada y Failde BMJ Arquitectos SCP
  • © Besada y Failde BMJ Arquitectos SCP

On the sensory tour of the historic garden, the visually impaired can perceive the sound of water, fountains, the smell of magnolia and eucalyptus flowers, the singing of birds, and even a game of odors at the end of the tour.

The intervention in the Historic Garden of Castrelos de Vigo is included in ACCESS 2010 work improvements for access to the public facilities of Vigo City Council, and also in the national PLAN E of 2010. The idea started from a premise of the adaptation of an existing garden to design a “garden for the blind”. The objective of the project was to offer people with visual difficulties, the tools to enjoy the historic garden. The circuit begins in The garden of aromatic plants, where a taped path directs the route, along with tactile and aromatic stimuli that facilitate and affect the sensory perception of the garden. This tape allows perceiving the sound of water, fountains, the smell of magnolia flowers, the song of birds, the smell of eucalyptus trees, and even a game of odours at the end of the route. There are also tables of the senses, where, with didactic vocation, small containers are installed whose content will vary according to the seasons, also affecting aromas, colours, and textures. For the proper functioning of the park, the collaboration of the municipal park caretakers, involved in the work of dissemination and maintenance of the garden over the years, has been necessary.

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