2015 TALA Awards — Excellence Award Winners

We take a closer look at who finished on top in the 2015 TALA Awards. A few weeks ago, Landscape Architects Network announced the finalists in Thailand’s 2015 TALA Professional Awards competition, and now we are excited to announce the six projects to win Awards of Excellence. These projects were recognized at an awards ceremony March 21. 2015 TALA Awards In no particular order, they are: 1. General Design — Residential Complex: Parkland Srinakarin, Bangkok, by Landscape Architects 49 Limited The design for this project was inspired by the notion of transforming the natural form into something playful, artful, and functional. Landforms and changes in topography were utilized to subdivide the spaces to accommodate individual uses and to provide privacy when needed, while plants were u...Read More

We take a closer look at Green Walls with key examples from green wall company Cultiwall. Green walls are becoming increasingly popular in modern architecture and landscape architecture. .Green walls — from the simplest ones built from climbers to the most exquisite and technologically advanced — are known for their aesthetic value, creation of ecosystems, and positive influence on a building’s heat efficiency. They also have a profound positive impact on air quality, especially in regard to humidity and dust content, both indoors and outdoors. There are many different types and systems of green walls, from the very simple to the increasingly technologically advanced. The simplest green wall usually consists of some sort of durable, lightweight support structure and climb...Read More

LAN Tutorial: How to Place Large Quantities of Trees in a Master Plan Instantly with AutoCAD expert Rob Koningen. Placing a tree in a design for a garden is an entirely different task then placing trees in a design for a master plan of a few hectares. For a garden design, you pick the positions carefully; for a master plan, you may just need sheer quantity, roughly placed. And when that deadline is approaching, you may need to place them quickly. In this article, you will learn two ways to place trees — and place them fast. How to Place Large Quantities of Trees Sweep Your Mouse It is recommended to use blocks for trees. The UrbanLISP Trail command allows you to place blocks with a free hand. Once the command is activated, you need to pick the block you prefer and click a point in th...Read More

Roofpark Vierhavenstrip, by Buro Sant en Co with the municipality of Rotterdam, in Rotterdam, Netherlands. How can you combine and reunite indoor and outdoor urbanity? Have you ever wondered why the public space around shopping centers lacks urbanity and design? Well, in the majority of cases, the whole design of public spaces is brought indoors, so that the gap and in the spatial experience between inside and outside becomes greater in a negative way. The spaces outside the buildings remain without any creative design or the feeling of urbanity, which means safety and diversity in activities is not a given. To deal with this phenomena, Buro Sant en Co together with the municipality of Rotterdam created the project “Roofpark Vierhavenstrip” retail (indoor) with a spacious public roof park ...Read More

University Park Essen, by Scape Landscape Architects, in Essen, Germany. University Park, designed by Scapes Landscape Architects, is an open space adjacent to the University of Duisburg-Essen, lying within easy reach of the campus, the city center, and Limbecker Square shopping mall. Not long ago, it was an urban wasteland. How could a disused railway site near the heart of Essen be transformed into a usable public space? This was the question the landscape architects had to answer when designing the park. The chosen design retains much of the existing layout and reflects the history of the site. The choice of material and the shape of the physical elements were inspired by the site’s history as a residential quarter for Krupps foundry workers. Three phases of the park have been completed...Read More

Fengming Mountain Park, by Martha Schwartz Partners, in Chongqing, China. Fengming Mountain Park is the kind of project that was meant to draw attention to the nearby development structures, but managed to attract visitors with its unique elements. Located in the Shapingba District of Chongqing, Fengming Mountain Park covers a surface of 16 hectares and bears the signature trademark of Martha Schwartz Partners, being commissioned by Vanke. The talented team has managed to take a space that was bleak and transform it into a genuinely dynamic urban experience, with amazing splashes of color. The project was completed in 2013 and it represented a definite success for the professional team of landscape architects. Fengming Mountain Park What Was the Original Idea Behind Fengming Mountain Park?...Read More

Place de la Fontaine Chaude designed by OKRA in collaboration with OTC Engineering, AAPP Architects, in Dax, France.  At a time in which the global water supply is running out, it is hard to believe there are millions of liters of water flowing from a fountain in a city’s downtown. Dax is a small city established by the Romans in the 1st century AD, located in the southwest of France, and well known since Roman times for its thermal waters. The legend of the “Legionnaires’ Dog” illustrates the discovery of Dax’s waters’ healing abilities and the birth of hydrotherapy. According to the legend, a legionnaire stationed in Dax left his dog, crippled from rheumatism, in the river before leaving for battle. After he returned, he found his dog rejuvenated by the thermal mu...Read More

“A Changing Neighborhood”, designed by Espace Libre, Mantes-la-Jolie, France. The urban neighborhood of Val Fourré, located in Mantes-la-Jolie, France, has undergone an amazing transformation, going from bleak to awe-inspiring. The project was completed in 2014 and it covers an area of 56,500 square meters. Escape Libre was the firm responsible for the successful project, commissioned by HLM Interprofessionelle Région Paris. This is the kind of project that demonstrates how much it is possible to change a neighborhood; starting from inspiration and adding talent, one can ensure urban renewal at its finest. Nature is brought back to being the source of everything that is alive and beautiful, blending in with the rest of the urban landscape.  “A Changing Neighborhood” What Was It...Read More

Our partners Building Trust International are are aiming to save wildlife with eco-lodges. Building Trust international are pleased to announce a new sustainable design prototype for an eco-lodge that will assist local villagers protecting natural areas by attracting local and foreign tourists to see critically endangered species thereby creating local income that is not based on selling forest products. Building Trust international have worked alongside Atelier COLE, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the Sam Veasna Center (SVC) on a new eco-lodge designed and built by the local community, NGO partners and through a hands-on participatory design and build workshop. Eco-lodges in Cambodia A Special Request Building Trust were requested by WCS to work with the local community in Tm...Read More

Killesberg Park by Rainer Schmidt Landschaftsarchitekten GMBH, in Stuttgart, Germany. Every place has its own story. And that story very often is the line framing its authentic character and spirit. In order to reinforce the unique experience each site bears, designers try to “capture” that spirit within their projects. But capturing isn’t enough. It is just the beginning of what is needed for a successful human intervention. To make the most of a place, there are a few necessary and sufficient conditions. They cover the understanding that nature and history should always be treated with respect. In this way only, designers will find the balance between design and function, emotion and conservation. Finding that balance isn’t easy, but it isn’t impossible, either. Landscape architects from...Read More