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Hi, 
I have just been accepted to the MLA in VT Alexandria. When I searched on the internet, I found your post here. Are you still in WAAC? How do you feel that?

Portfolio covers have always been an interest of mine and I tend to have a personal and particular way of looking at them. I think that they can say so much about the content enclosed; of coarse opposite from the famous saying “don’t judge a book by its cover”. From my perspective I look at it as a blank canvas that can be used as a built up, to s…[Read more]

I moved from a firm in the south, where construction activity goes on year round, to a firm in Canada- where the local bylaws actually prohibit the pouring of concrete between November and April due to low temperatures.
I expected to see some seasonal cycling in work load up north, but there is none. We are busy year round. That being said- if…[Read more]

I Think there are lots of types of jobs that make great changes.
Some are the big pretty photo-op projects that go on the cover of LA Magazine. These make changes in the world because they inspire people. If you want to be inspired pick up any ASLA magazine
Others are the mundane but vital policy jobs that make incremental but meaningful changes-…[Read more]

Find yourself a college where the arch and LA schools go hand in hand. Some schools put LA in the Agriculture school. Some put it in an environmental design school.
My college put LA in the School of Architecture. This gave us a lot of opportunity to mix and match and will give you the opportunity to explore both sides. I have plenty of friends…[Read more]

Thank you all for your insights.

bwaa ha ha…. I’ve been in this profession long enough to have forgotten the ideals that drove me to this profession.
Maybe that’s a little too cynical…. but it is funny how little we get to exercise our imagination and creativity. Depends on the client I guess.

I am a landscape architect working as Park Planner for a growing city in the Midwest. I worked in the private sector for about 8 years before moving to the public side in January this year. As the City’s only landscape architect and the Parks and Recreation Department’s only design professional, I have a lot of responsibility and oversight for…[Read more]

I went from self/unemployment to a big, lethargic, bureaucratic mess of a place.  Idealism has been been sort of squashed.  But I’m not quitting; the benefits of employment are way too nice.
If you land the job, get ready for politics where there should be none, favortism, egos, fifedoms and a bunch of other stuff that has no place in a go…[Read more]

I meant where does Coordinates live where a municipality is turning staff LAs loose to “explore your true power of imagination and creativity, and implement all your ideas to offer a new compelling look”.
 
I’m guessing sarcasm, …. or someone from a distant land.

It’s definitely going to depend on the city and what role their LA’s play.  Are they strictly code review/authoring?  Are they within a department that uses them for design like parks?  Is the role primarily for overseeing design contracts that are bid out to firms?  Is it a public role or a behind the scenes position?  In my area I’ve seen extr…[Read more]

That post was an attempt at humor for April Fools day, Tosh. The idea was that Andrew should get excited about an MLA, because there were all these special offers he would not get with the other degree, like the chance to win a Prius. It seemed funny to me at the time, for some reason.
I’ve actually only had two interviews in the entire year since…[Read more]

Mark- I’m a little late in responding but in 2010 I spoke with someone from ASLA here in the U.S. and they estimated that 40-45% of LA’s were displaced from the profession at that time.

I live in the South East. But I see your point. Cities are as different as companies. Being the LA for Portland, Oregon would be wildly different than being the LA for Brownsville, Texas.

This is related to a thesis?  One is to understand the natural processes and cycles in project areas, and design to be “adaptable” or “resilient” (see field ecology theory) to these systems.  This should also take into account anthropological development and histories. Whether to call it “greed” or what not is less important than the issues that d…[Read more]

I do remember a time when nearly everyone at our program would sit on multiple offers at graduation. Oh the good ole days.

Where do you live?

I think it would be really great and challenging to work as a landscape architecture for a city. You can explore your true power of imagination and creativity, and implement all your ideas to offer a new compelling look to the city.

Nice poem, I enjoyed reading it. There is no limitation to creativity and innovation of an architect in the field of landscape architecture, and they have the ability to create an all-new world, which can look absolutely real, and inspire people even to write poems!

So glad that you shared this!  Thanks!