In the last of a four-part series on fences, The Sound Fountain concentrates on Holland, where the countryside has been tamed more than in any other country of the world. The Dutch landscape was immortalised by the 17th century masters, but has it lost the magic of earlier times? There are some in the Netherlands who think it has. Who believe that the barbed wire that carves the land into perfect squares for agriculture has, in effect, imprisoned the people who have no connection any more with the rural areas.
But there is a project that’s trying to replace the barbed wire with living hedges – Liberating the Dutch landscape.
Producer: Dheera Sujan
Broadcast: December 17, 2000