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Kontum Indochine Café by Vo Trong Nghia Architects, in Kontum, Vietnam. The Kontum Indochine Café is located in Kontum, Vietnam. It was designed by Vo Trong Nghia Architects and was built in January 2013 This bamboo creation has an area of 551 square meters (5,390 square feet) and is located near the Dakbla River in Kontum city. It is part of a hotel complex in which the natural color of the bamboo creates an open space where the hotel’s guests can have a different dining experience. The café has a breakfast, dinner, and tea area for the guests. Bamboos are some of the fastest-growing plants in the world, due to a unique rhizome-dependent system. Certain species can grow 35 inches within a 24-hour period, at a rate of three centimeters an hour (a growth of approximately one millimeter ever...Read More

Choorstraat-Papenhulst, by Buro Lubbers, s’Hertogenbosch, Netherlands. There is always something intriguing about a project that exudes simplicity. You know, the ones that look effortlessly put together, like models on a catwalk. Nestled within the historic setting of a neo-gothic chapel, the project Choorstraat-Papenhulst was sparked by the transformation of a historic center within the immediate vicinity of the courtyard into a luxurious apartment building. Buro Lubbers has designed a space that is part of a sequence of squares around Sint-Jans Cathedral, giving the area a little boost to mark the change in residencies. The initial design as implemented is supposed to be a transformation of a private courtyard into a semi-public square. But unlike a bustling city square, the serenity of ...Read More

Cumberland Park, by Hargreaves Associates, in Nashville, Tennessee, USA. With more than 3 million visitors a year, the city of Nashville realized it was losing an opportunity in regard to the Cumberland Riverfront. With the help of Hargreaves Associates, the government, many specialists, and a considerable private and public investment, the project went from paper to rock. Water has always been the source of life, whether it is the ocean, a river or a lake. All great cities in history have been founded around or along a body of water: the River Thames in London, the Seine in Paris, New York Harbor and the Hudson river in New York City, Lake Michigan in Chicago, and the world-famous Nile River in Egypt. This natural treasure is mainly used as a food resource and communication bank, but some...Read More

Project Banyoles Old Town Remodeling, by Miàs Architects, in Banyoles, Spain. Landscape architecture often has the power to transform a space, bringing out the best features and demonstrating that it is never too late for urban remodeling. The remodeling of Banyoles old town stands is clear proof of how far landscape architecture has advanced and how talented are the people who work in this field. The project was commissioned by the Banyoles City Council and it was undertaken by the talented team at Miàs Architects. Completed in 2011, the project covered an area of 18.000 m2 and it had a budget of approximately €4 million. The project was successful (to say the least), receiving numerous awards and recognitions, including the Premis D’Arquitectura Comarques de Girona in 2007. Banyoles Old ...Read More

Zhangjiagang Town River Reconstruction, by Botao Landscape (Australia), in Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China. Zhangjiagang Town River stretches 2,200 meters along busy commercial streets in Jiangsu, China. It begins at Gudu Harbor and extends to Gangcheng Boulevard, with an average width of almost 12 meters. Despite its large size, as the city began to expand around the river in the early 1990s, pollution started to overtake the water as raw sewage was drained from the surrounding houses directly into the river. The city didn’t have the means to clean it up due to the proximity of the houses, and the water quality began to suffer. This pollution began to have a huge impact on the city as a whole. The people soon became so overwhelmed by the dirty river, traffic congestion, and a failing...Read More

Ecocapsule, by Nice Architects, Bratislava, Slovakia. As humans, we have been incredibly lucky to be given the right to live on planet Earth, with its amazingly diverse resources. Unfortunately, a lot of Earth’s inhabitants have taken these resources for granted, wasting them and not thinking about the future. Concerned about future generations and wanting the human spirit to thrive for as long as possible on this planet, the talented team at Nice Architects has created the most amazing micro-home you have ever seen. The Ecocapsule is a more than suitable choice for the modern dwelling needs of Earth’s inhabitants, given the fact that it functions solely on the energy provided by the sun and the wind. Let’s find out more information about it. How Did The Ecocapsule All Start? In 2008, Nice...Read More

Getting an education as landscape architecture students is tough, enjoyable but tough. So make the most of it and get the rewards most students will miss out on, even the top ones. Getting a degree in Landscape Architecture is rewarding, challenging and at times frustrating beyond belief. The years at university are so packed with academic work that it is easy to forget to take advantage of all the opportunities granted to you. Here are the top 10 things landscape architecture students should make sure they do before graduating. Landscape Architecture Students, Listen up! 1. Get Away from Your University Once you have a feel for design culture and style in your area, get out. Go away, preferably far, far away and see how it’s done somewhere else. Studying abroad is a great way to do ...Read More

This week’s Sketchy Saturday top 10. We don’t run the Sketchy Saturday every week because we have to wait until the right sketches come in. We take pride in posting a rich diversity of hand drawing talent as we want to celebrate the many different styles that are sent into us. We don’t just want generic sketches, we want sketches that are unmistakably yours and an extension of who you are and what you can offer the world. Student, professional or hobbyist, everyone gets treated the same when it comes to Sketchy Saturday, making it a unique melting pot of passion, creativity and skills. Enjoy this week’s Sketchy Saturday top 10! 1o. by Elisabeth Lindman garden designer / architect at Lustgård Trädgårdsdesign, founder and chairman of the Swedish Society for Garden designers, Swed...Read More

Eden Project, in Nicholas Grimshaw and Partners, Tim Smit, Arup Engineering, in Cornwall, United Kingdom. Once an open clay pit, the Eden project in Cornwall, United Kingdom, today represents one of the most beautiful examples of a recultivated surface mine. The pit was mined for more than 160 years; in 1995, the original idea for the Eden project was born. The once desolate area is now home to attractions such as the Malaysian House, Rainforest Aerial Walkway, Pollination (and the Giant Bee), Grapevines (with Dionysus), Olives (gold path with doves), Biomass Fuels, Myth and Folklore, Wild Cornwall, and The Core with The Seed. It is not surprising that in its first few months after opening in 2001, Eden was visited by more than a million people! The number of visitors has increased each ye...Read More

Sea Park, by Substance, in Saulkrasti, Latvia. Did you know that waterfront locations are highly coveted for private investment? They are main points of city development. Prominent for their fantastic view and for livability, waterfronts often fall into private hands. Consequently, they are not open to the public at large. This is not the case for Sea Park. Saulkrasti County Council in Latvia was looking for a development where added value could be shared not only with residents and tourists but also take into account the economic benefits for the city. Looking for a niche among the seaside towns, the council decided to focus on recreation, tourism, and entertainment. Sea Park The park was designed to link the central part of Saulkrasti with the beach. Thus, the livability of the whole cit...Read More

Workplace Ergonomics for Landscape Architects: The Best Equipment for Your Office. Are you worried about the time you spend sitting and working? Have you started to complain of backaches? Are you already wearing glasses? If your answer to any of these questions is yes, keep on reading. This article is dedicated to all of you landscape architects out there who are putting in a lot of hours at the office and risking your health while doing so. But don’t worry: You can stay healthy by choosing the right ergonomic equipment for your office. Workplace Ergonomics First of all, you need to understand that technology has made us sedentary. We are no longer forced to hunt for food, and that has changed our bodies. It has made them less resistant and more prone to adopting postures that are quite ha...Read More

Queens Botanical Garden, by Atelier Dreiseitl and Conservation Design Forum, in Flushing, New York, USA. The field of landscape architecture puts a lot of focus on urban areas. The dense stratification of people and buildings screams for a new perspective that can breathe life into the built environment and offer a different experience. Queens, New York, is a dense urban environment that has a unique public space that gives the community a nature-based experience. The Queens Botanical Garden has served as a cultural and educational connection for the diverse population of Queens and provided a space for people to interact with nature and each other. The Queens Botanical Garden Master Plan, developed by Atelier Dreiseitl and Conservation Design Forum, is being used to encourage sustainabili...Read More