A realm of realities in landscape architecture

february 17, 2010

  
Experimental landscape.
Pprovided by Brian Cook.

We often associate landscape architecture with architecture. The names are similar, but the fundamentals couldn’t be more different. For example, the building materials which used for projects in each discipline are very different. Architecture uses static physical materials that are at the end of their life cycle. Landscape architecture, on other hand, uses live materials that change over time. Brian Cook addresses these differences in his paper called A Realm of Realities in Landscape Architecture.

Cook notices that our perception about landscape architecture comes from the way we view architecture and photography. In our perceptions we see landscape architecture as a static image. Landscape architects even produce designs to look complete. Are we missing something here? Can landscape design stay static over five or ten years? This is possible to achieve, but with high maintenance costs. Cook’s proposal is to take advantage of the constant change of landscape materials and design our projects accordingly. Just think how different our designs will be.

For those of you who think that this methodology of designing urban landscapes is impossible, Cook created a pilot project. He has been working on this project for past two years with notable success. 

Experimental landscape.
Pprovided by Brian Cook.

Experimental landscape.
Pprovided by Brian Cook.

Experimental landscape.
Pprovided by Brian Cook.

Experimental landscape.
Pprovided by Brian Cook.

Experimental landscape.
Pprovided by Brian Cook.

Experimental landscape.
Pprovided by Brian Cook.

Experimental landscape.
Pprovided by Brian Cook.

Experimental landscape.
Pprovided by Brian Cook.

Experimental landscape.
Pprovided by Brian Cook.

Experimental landscape.
Pprovided by Brian Cook.

 

 

 

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