The term "landscape," which is inherently polysemous, encompasses a wide range of fields of study and has been the focus of numerous research efforts at the University of Lausanne for the past twenty years. This interdisciplinary topic engages scholars from various faculties, addressing critical societal, political, and environmental issues that have gained prominence in recent years.
Since the early 2000s, a significant research hub has developed at the University of Lausanne centered on the theme of mountains, a fundamental element of the Swiss territory. Initially supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation and later hosted within the Faculty of Arts at the Center for Historical Sciences of Culture (SHC), the Viaticalpes research project focused on the cultural history of travel in Switzerland and the Alps. Directed by Claude Reichler, a professor of French literature, and historian Daniela Vaj until its conclusion in 2020, this project cataloged illustrated travel books about the Alps published between the 16th century and the early 20th century. The creation of a database of travel images has facilitated the documentation and digitization of over 3,000 engravings and photographs, which are now described, indexed, and geolocated. Today, Viatimages is one of the largest databases in the Humanities and one of the most visited showcases.
To extend the Viaticalpes project and broaden the theme to other research fields, the Landscape Platform was established in spring 2022. This initiative aims to highlight individual efforts related to landscape studies within UNIL by consolidating them onto a common portal, while also providing researchers access to various landscape-related databases. Additionally, the project develops educational activities and organizes diverse events focused on landscape topics, such as conferences and symposia.
Project website : https://www.unil.ch/plateforme-paysage/
Contact : Prof. Emmanuel Reynard, Project leader