Blog

Article by Frank Bourque – We look at the idea of permeable pavement with industry expert Robert Bowers and investigate why we need it more than ever in the world. Could the pavement industry be on its way to a revolution? We interviewed Robert Bowers, P. Eng., LEED Green Associate and Director of Engineering at the Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute, who holds the opinion that there is little choice but for this to happen if we want to continue to have livable and sustainable communities in the not-so-distant future. Three fundamental reasons necessitate using permeable pavements: Excess stormwater runoff due to an increase in extreme storms The environmental disaster this often causes The increasing cost of managing stormwater Permeable Pavement Stormwater Management is a Pri...Read More

Article by Aybige Tek – Öresjö recreational area by MARELD landscape architects, in Trollhättan, Sweden. When designing the Öresjö recreational area, the main concept for the landscape architects and people involved in the design phase was to create a beach and bathing areas in public space for everyone. Public use was their main goal where the geometry is circular; half-moon shaped, in fact, and also has linear and also curved beach pathways around it. Let’s see how they achieved their goal of creating a beach for everyone now: Öresjö Recreational Area The park is located in Trollhättan, Sweden, in Öresjö Recreational Park. This small village has Trollhättan Canal for natural walks, the Saab Car Museum, and the Innovatum Science Center as its top landmark places to visit. Öresjö Par...Read More

Article by Niriti Porwal – A review of Angelopolis Corporate Terrace by DLC Architects (María Guadalupe Domínguez Landa, Rafael López Corona) in Lomas de Angelópolis, Puebla, México. Good commercial landscape planning is a matter of striking the right balance of form and function. In order to make the landscape speak for itself, it is important to think about how you want the user to interact with your design and gain a valued experience. Angelopolis Corporate Terrace The design for Angelopolis Corporate Terrace is one such example that has set a benchmark for commercial landscape planning projects. The design approach seeks to seamlessly gratify the client’s needs by being a technically, functionally, and aesthetically rich space. Located in an urban area near the city of Puebla, Mexico, ...Read More

Article by Kurt Longland – We take a look at 5 awesome projects for streetscape design inspiration, covering some of the world’s most unique and interesting landscape architecture projects.  So it’s the time of year when one project has been completed and another is under way, and as such you learn that your new task is to design a streetscape … whatever that means. Once you realize that it is as simple as the name implies, it suddenly dawns on you why this area of design has its own name. But how can one design a street? Whether starting from a green field or from an existing main road, how can we design an inspiring, interesting, and intelligent intervention into these challenging areas? While you might already have an answer — and we would like to hear abou...Read More

The Floating Piers, by Christo And Jeanne-Claude, in Lake Iseo, Italy. For more than 40 years, the artists had this vision of a floating walkway; the project was first conceived by Christo and Jeanne-Claude in 1970 but not actually brought to life until 2016. It was Christo’s first large-scale project since 2005 when he and Jeanne-Claude realized The Gates in N.Y.C., and since Jeanne-Claude died in 2009. In 2014, when Christo and his team explored Northern Italy’s lakes, they found Lake Iseo to be the most inspiring location of them all. Lake Iseo or Lago d’Iseo is located 100 Km east of Milan and 200 Km west of Venice and is the fourth-largest lake in Lombardy, Italy; the lake is fed by the Oglio River. Through the work of Christo and his team, the place was reimagined and transformed and...Read More

We take a look at the exterior of your home, and how to make it eco-friendly in an otherwise non-ecofriendly world.  Our communities have never placed more emphasis on green efforts, and for good reason. With greenhouse gas emissions and constant waste harming our ecosystem, it’s our duty to find ways to make our homes and lives more eco-friendly. While many green efforts focus on the interior of a home, exterior upgrades can make a huge difference in utility bills and home value. Whether you choose to pursue long-term upgrades like cool roofing or make gardening changes that can keep your yard looking its best, these strategies will have you well on your way to an eco-friendly exterior. Make Your Home Eco-Friendly Motion-Sensing Lights It’s common to have lights in your outdoor living spa...Read More

In this article, we discuss the essentials for rural homesteading. The desire to “get away from it all” drives more and more people away from cities and into rural areas each year. The desire to avoid crime, pollution, congestion and a fast-paced lifestyle inspire these city-dwellers to relocate, and the news coverage of those same problems encourages most rural folks to stay put. Of course, there are some sacrifices involved in this escape from civilization. Life is considerably different when you go off the grid, or at least toward the edge of the grid. There are no insurmountable challenges, but if you’re considering a move away from the concrete and asphalt, there are things that you should plan for to make sure that your relocation isn’t a failure. Essentials R...Read More

Article by Galo César Gutiérrez Díaz – A review of Canal Park by OLIN, in Washington, District Of Columbia, USA. In a city where the priority is the automobile, will it be a great advance to recover open public spaces? These improve the quality of life of its inhabitants, giving multiple benefits from social to economic. Recovering an open public space is not easy; it takes a lot of social support to make this happen, but by doing so, it causes a long chain of benefits for the sites where it is possible. In the district of Anacostia, Washington D.C., a project shows us one of the best ways to recover three blocks that were intended for the district’s school parking lot. This beautiful landscape design was achieved by the OLIN studio, who were in charge of capturing a beautiful ...Read More

Calling all emerging professionals: Get your pen out, and bring on the creative ideas. The 2017 National Grant Competition for Emerging Professionals in Landscape Architecture has just been announced! This competition, created by Anova Furnishings, will award 21 winners $2,000 to fund attendance at the 2017 ASLA Annual Meeting and EXPO in Los Angeles, CA. The competition, which debuted last year, challenges emerging professionals to come up with and pitch their own idea, preparing them for future client meetings. Receiving over 120 entries in 2016 with the question “What change would you make in your region if money were no object?”, entrants were invited to share their vision along with a quick napkin sketch. The 21 winning entries show a diversity of ideas and the broad depth of interest...Read More

Article by Win Phy0 – A review of Przelomy Centre for Dialogue, by KWK Promes, in Szczecin, Poland. Imagine a place that is deeply rooted in a painful history, a place that hasn’t caught a break in the years since. The potential for reviving that space and making a 360-degree turnaround might seem highly unlikely. For years, a section of Szczecin, Poland, suffered this sorry state. The once vibrant urban quarter was first destroyed by aerial bombings during World War II, then neglected under Soviet regimes. There were times when the people tried to take back the site’s identity, but it wasn’t until the turn of a new century that real progress began to be made. Przelomy Centre for Dialogue Today, the city has taken back this space, now home to the Przelomy Centre for Dialogue. The tur...Read More

Article by Maria Giovanna Drago – A review of Hotel Mar Adentro by Miguel Angel Aragonés – San José del Cabo, México. Mar Adentro is a hotel complex located at the far southern tip of the California peninsula in Mexican territory. It’s separated from the inland by the Sea of Cortez, a geographical area characterized by the prosperity of marine fauna and flora — it is recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in the category of natural goods. The complex directly overlooks the beach, inviting guests to scan the horizon. It stands out among the succession of hotels along the coastline, not just because it is completely white, but also thanks to its essential and modern design. It is composed of more than 200 rooms, suites, and villas. Mexican architect Miguel Angel Arag...Read More

Article by Ophelia Yuting Ji – A review of the Loop light installation, by Olivier Girouard, Jonathan Villeneuve, and Ottoblix, in Montréal, Québec, Canada. When we think about a city’s landscape, we often picture rivers, parks, neighborhoods, and downtown streets shining beneath the beautiful light of the sun. But what about the city’s nighttime landscape? The nighttime view and the daytime view can be astonishingly different. When the natural landscape fades from view in the night, the infrastructural landscape created by people takes center stage, often providing a charming atmosphere framing the energetic activities going on under the moonlight and artificial lighting. The relationships among infrastructure, public spaces, and people are redefined in the starry night. Ideally, we...Read More