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When it comes to water, flood prevention is one part of a much bigger picture for landscape architects – and that’s championing water sensitive urban design (WSUD). Landscape architects elsewhere in the world may know WSUD by different monikers, such as low-impact development (LID) or sustainable urban drainage systems (SUDS). Regardless of the name, we at the Landscape Institute believe that attractive, liveable landscapes go hand in hand with smart water management. While many Land8 members may be most familiar with our commissioned animations like I Want to be a Landscape Architect and Water Sensitive Urban Design, the Landscape Institute is also involved in many other initiatives to encourage people to rethink our relationship with water. As the Royal Chartered Institute for landscape ...Read More

Welcome to the 6th edition of Sketchy Saturday, sponsored by Sprout Pencil, a pencil that grows! This week we had a particularly hard time making our selection and choosing the winner not only because all the drawings you sent us were awesome, but also because we have a reward for the best sketch! The winner will receive a lovely gift from Sprout Pencil! Nevertheless, here it is – a brand new selection of our readers’ drawings. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did! 10. Scott Simbler “This sketch was created on a rainy day sitting at a coffee shop on the east side of the river bank in the city of Bordeaux. I tried to capture the depth in which the colossal bridge links the two sides of the city with the beautiful skyline in the distance.” 9. Lindsey Tabor “Th...Read More

Want to win FREE registration to next year’s ASLA conference? Enter our fabulous new Instagram contest and you could land a complimentary pass to the 2014 ASLA Annual Meeting & EXPO in Denver, CO! Read on for the full contest details! With this year’s ASLA conference just around the corner, Land8 is partnering with ASLA to celebrate landscape architecture in Boston by giving all conference-goers the chance to turn their fantastic Instagram photos of the Boston landscape into a chance to win free registration! All you have to do to win is: 1. Follow both @landscapearch and @land8 on Instagram (you must follow both to be eligible) 2. Stop by the ASLA Commons social media lounge at the EXPO on Saturday November 16 to pick up the ASLA and Land8 logos 3. Snap pictures of the log...Read More

I am a 2011 graduate of Ball State University’s BLA program and I am proud to say that I work in the residential design field. However, if you had asked me four years ago where my future would take me, I would never have guessed correctly. Let me explain why. Of the many lessons learned and attitudes absorbed in an undergraduate landscape architecture program, there is one that is especially contagious – the stigma against residential design as a valid career choice. It may start in the form of offhand comments from professors or a witty T-shirt boasting “I’m an LA and I won’t design your garden!” No matter the avenue, this stigma may be detrimental to the career of a recent graduate. In LAM’s May 2013 issue, editor Bradford McKee suggests that LAM’s readers might want to take medication b...Read More

Having progressed through a three-and-a-half-year undergraduate degree and a two-year part-time postgraduate program in landscape architecture, followed by another year on the Landscape Institute’s Pathway to Chartership, I sorely wish I had known then some of the things I know now. It certainly would have saved me some time and effort. Here are the Top 10 things I wish I had known while I was a landscape architecture student. 10. Other professionals and consultants have a lot to bring to the project, and it is worth getting to know them. While at university, I wasn’t fully aware of the specialist knowledge of other professionals. I knew architects designed buildings and engineers could make it happen, but knew little else. Planners, ecologists, archaeologists, arborists, air quality...Read More

Let’s be honest, going for an interview for a job is a daunting experience. Unless you have nerves of steel or have an uncanny knack for not feeling fear – a job interview can be up there in the adrenalin category with speaking in public and even bungy jumping for some people! Graduate landscape architects have an even more arduous task on their hands when compared to other professions, as not only do they need to possess a unique skill set, they must also produce examples of previous work. What are the top 10 tips for graduate landscape architects in today’s demanding and increasingly competitive field? 10. Answer every interviewer’s ultimate question Every aspect of going for an interview, including all the preparation items, everything you should and shouldn’t do and all post inte...Read More

Today, Land8’s Film-tastic Friday offers a sneak peek into The Cultural Landscape Foundation’s (TCLF) upcoming new series featuring National Medal of Arts winner and landscape architect Laurie Olin. Kicking off with design insights into the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden, the Laurie Olin Pioneers Oral History will go live on Tuesday, November 12. Hit the jump for the video!   From the description: “Learn the design precedents which contribute to this Washington, D.C. outdoor gallery space. This clip is part of a series of richly illustrated interviews with landscape architect Laurie Olin, offering intriguing insights into his life, career, design philosophy and the concepts behind his legacy projects. Visit The Cultural Landscape Foundation’s website (http...Read More

Building Trust International has released the winners and honorable mentions for the PLAYscapes competition. In this Top Ten, we will be traveling to underused and undervalued areas from Melbourne to Mumbai and from Cape Town to Madrid to see how professionals have re-imagined these dark corners as places for play. 10. StairScape — New York, USA Located on Bowery in the Lower East Side of New York City, a former asphalt yard is turned into a small, playful space. Stairscapes accommodates those who want to either rest or play, challenging traditional ideas of a city bench and a pocket park. It aims to be a “new civic space for all” that provides customers in adjacent shops with extra seating and a space for office workers to enjoy a relaxing lunch and break time, for families to enjoy...Read More

Happy Friday! For this week’s Film-tastic Friday, Land8 explores landscape architecture firm Grant Associates’ award-winning ‘Gardens by the Bay’ in Singapore. Hit the jump for the video!   From the description: “Masterplanned by Grant Associates, Gardens by the Bay is a remarkable blend of nature, technology, environmental management and imagination. Andrew Grant, director of UK landscape architects Grant Associates, walks around Gardens by the Bay in Singapore, reflecting on the ideas and inspirations behind the the design of the spectacular Supertrees, Cooled Conservatories and Themed Gardens. Having trouble viewing the video? Try this video link. + Grant Associates

DesignIntelligence has just released their list for the best landscape architecture schools of 2014 with some interesting new insights. Penn State University leads this year’s undergraduate pack, snatching the coveted position as America’s top BLA program from Louisiana State University, which held the number one position for the past three years. And for the tenth year in a row, Harvard University still dominates the ranks as the best graduate landscape architecture program in America. Keep reading to see if your school made the list! Every year, DesignIntelligence surveys hundreds of selected professional practice leaders–over 300 different landscape architecture firms participated this year–on questions ranging from their biggest concerns about the profession to ...Read More

What happens when a memorial is rested with the intention that it will be occupied as an everyday space? What happens when the loss of a person is not remembered with an old tradition of an inscribed plinth but created as a space that allows people to embody the whole experience of joy and commemoration? “Reaching Out, Letting In” is the title of Gustafson Porter’s high-profile and highly controversial memorial fountain to the most loved princess in Britain — Princess Diana. The concept of the Diana Memorial Fountain: “Reaching Out, Letting In” embodies the qualities of the Princess of Wales that made her so loveable: her inclusiveness and her accessibility. The fountain is a sculptural element in its own right; its presence draws people toward the space, yet has a gently expansive e...Read More