Allen & Ovary Roof Gardens

In 2005 Law firm Allen & Ovary moved into their new headquarters at Spitalfields. The building, designed by Foster and Partners also incorporated three roof terraces which were designed by Townshend Landscape Architects.

Roof gardens are becoming an ever more important aspect of landscape and the built environment, yet because they are almost always part of private buildings it is difficult for the public to experience them. Fortunately I was able to arrange a special visit to one of the roof terraces of the Allen & Ovary building.

Perhaps the most striking thing about the gardens here is the view- looking down over Old Spitalfields market and the low rise buildings of London's East End and also towards the city with it's iconic structures such as the Swiss Rae Building (The Gherkin). The gardens themselves offer some tranquility from the office environment and flow out from a cafe on the 6th floor. The space has numerous tables and chairs and also features parasoles enabling the space to be used more flexibly. Planting is fairly basic (there are limitations on the types of plans suitable for use on roof gardens) and watering is carried out by an automatic system. Light weight paving material is used which is similar in design and quality to that used elsewear in the area.

RHS Garden- Wisley

Sometimes it is great just to get outside and experience beautiful environments. One such place close to my is the Royal Horticultural Societies garden at Wisley.
I don't think there can be many better times to visit than a lovely warm sunny day in spring when the entire site seems to be overcome with literally thousands of bulbs and the trees are riddled with blossom (thought it does happen that my favorite plant- the Gunnera Giant Rhubarb is far from impressive this early in the year). This also happened to be my first visit to the garden since the opening of the new glasshouse on the site. This expands the collection of plants which can be housed here by artificially creating tropical environments.
As well as these 'false' environments within the glasshouse there are many different settings for plants which are more common of southern England including orchards, vegetable patches as well as the more traditional English flower borders. The gardens here also include features such as sculpture both in a more traditional style with wicker fruits and the contemporary with a large piece by Henry Moore.

The Cut- Waterloo

The architecture of streets can often be very mundane, but simple projects such as that performed on The Cut, near Waterloo show how simple improvements can make a huge difference to the visual quality of the streetscape.

Many of the improvements here have been subtle- replacing sections of the paving with stone slaps in place of concrete gives the feeling of a quaility finish across the street. Examining street furniture can also be a useful tool to 'clean up' the street environment. Here unnecessary signs and railings have been removed to be replaced by necessary and functional equipment. Designated crossing ares have been highlighted and in places the road has been narrowed to make it more pedestrian friendly. Other features include the planting of trees- never to be underrated in their visual ability to change the environment. Additionally areas of seating and functional bicycle storage have been provided to make the street more usable for residents.

Altogether a simple but very effective scheme which leaves this road with a finish high above others in the area.

A flying visit to T5

The new Terminal 5 building at Heathrow has received a lot of press since it was opened last year- some for it's structure and design, much more about it's functionality (or lack of to begin with), but very little about it's landscape architecture.

While the terminal and masterplan were designed by Richard Rodgers Architects the landscape architecture was in the hands of Hyland Edgar Driver. One of the main areas to be treated is the space between the terminal car park and main entrance. A number of different techniques have been used here to create a high quality space. Central to the area is a large plaza of fountains which provide motion, sound, interest and by night, lighting. Spanning out from this on either side is a planted grid of Platanus hispanica (London Plane) trees set amongst quality paving. Finally on each end is a series of stone seating surrounding planting beds featuring further trees.

What this site possesses in quality it lacks in function. Although the centrally located fountains do turn heads it is only in passing- there is nowhere to sit anywhere near this area, or amongst the trees. The only possible function here is for people to pass through the plaza on the short journey from the car park to the terminal building. Original plans are believed to have included cafes sprawling from the terminal into the space- thus injecting a life into the area which is not apparent here.

In conclusion it seems that BAA have something of a missed opportunity here. A great space, but one which is not fully integrated into the terminal and therefore is not visited.

Hilliers Nursary

I was fortunate to be able to visit Hilliers Nursery in Liss, Hampshire to view their collection of trees and see how they are grown and managed.

During the day the group was introduced to a range of key trees which are of importance to Landscape Architects. We were also shown a selection of trees in different stages of growth and introduced to the process by which the trees are bred. The selection of trees available at the nursery is massive- their site in Liss alone covers more than 500 acres with all trees from seedlings up to mature specimens which have been growing for more than 20 years.

As well as normal stemmed trees there is also a range of multi-stemmed trees, shaped trees and instant hedging which is growing in popularity.

Finally we were shown examples of how the trees can be delivered- either bare root, root balled or container grown. This was followed by an impressive demonstration of their large root baller- effortlessly lifting a very large tree specimen!

Thanks must go to Hilliers, Caroline Swann and Jim for a very informative and enjoyable day out. Thanks also to Ed Wall at Kingston for organising the day.

Street Painting

Manfrad Stadar is a street artist who paints amazing designs into streets across the world. Graduating in Frankfurt Stadar specialises in 3D rather than more commonplace 2D works.An added feature of some of his designs is the ability to pose people as part of the scene creating a truly dynamic piece.This piece was commissioned in Seoul to advertise a Korean drink.

http://www.3d-street-art.com/

Kings Cross Square Development

As well as looking at current or built projects it is also important to look into the future.


One forthcoming project is that to re-develop the front of Kings Cross Station. The new square will act as a new forecourt for the refurbished station and will allow users to appreciate the design of the building which will have it's frontage revealed for the first time since 1972.

Six companies have been shortlisted by Network Rail to design the square with the winner due to be announced in June.

The six companies are:

• Field Operations
• Gehl Architects and Landscape Projects
• Gross.Max.
• Gustafson Porter
• Marther Schwartz Partners
• Stanton Williams

This should be an interesting project to follow over the next few years.

http://www.worldarchitecturenews.com/index.php?fuseaction=wanappln.projectview&upload_id=11003

Temple of a Million Bottles

It is fair to say that most buildings are constructed from brick and mortar. Very few however are constructed from glass bottles and mortar- however this is exactly how the buildings at 'Wat Lan Kaud' (Temple of a million bottles) were built in Thailand. The project began in 1984 and is now estimated to have used more than 1.5 million bottles donated by the local population. As well as looking beautiful this structure says more to us about it's values. This has proven to be a very successful structure- the bottles are strong, low maintenance and allow in natural light. Another draw to the structure is its impressive sustainable credentials- using the bottles in this way is a classic example of recycling what would otherwise be a waste material- even the bottle tops are retained to create decorative mosaics.
Perhaps the most ironic thing is that of the 1.5 million bottles so far used in the project not one has been donated by the builders directly- Buddhist monks for whom drinking is a sin!
This project, which has now become a tourist attraction in the local area should inspire us all to look beyond the obvious choices for building materials when there may be more creative, sustainable and fun solutions available.
http://www.inhabitat.com/2008/10/27/temple-of-a-million-bottles/

The Lost and Found Orchestra

Being a Landscape Architecture student is not just about focusing on Landscape Architecture directly. By looking at a wider context it is possible to make links to projects and themes which will then enrich Landscape design and planning.
The Lost and Found Orchestra, from the creators of STOMP is one such event which I found irresistible to influence design. The theme for the 'orchestra' is to create music from found and recycled every day objects- from traffic cones to glass bottles and even a household shower. The results are truly outstanding. This energetic performance shows how objects which one might conceive as rubbish can be used to activate people, make music and ultimately art. This is certainly food for thought, sustainability is always at the forefront of the current agenda and the themes explored here certainly provoke ideas- particularly relating to my current project related to musical child's play.
The Lost and Found Orchestra played at London's Royal Festival Hall from 19th December 2008 to 11th January 2009.
http://www.lostandfoundorchestra.com/

Digital Cities at New London Architecture

During a first sights visit to London I went to view the latest exhibition at New London Architecture- 'Digital Cities'. The exhibition looks at the way in which digital media is now influencing planning and building within cities. The computer age has built up a huge resource of e-materials and data. The exhibition includes data that has been used to create large scale models of areas of the City of London. Also displayed are maps showing pollution data movements of people and traffic.
Also displayed were several proposals for working cities displayed in new and inovative ways through the field of digital media.
The exhibit which interested me most was the 'London City Model' by GMJ Design (http://www.gmj.net/) which has built a comprehensive model of 40km of the city. This model can be used to test the contexts and locations of new archtectural projects throught London. In particular large buildings can be tested for sight lines and modifications can then be proposed easily.
The exhibition finishes on the 17th January (so you don't have a lot of time left to visit). Details of it and future exhibitions can be found at http://www.newlondonarchitecture.org/exhibitions.php.

Tree Walk- Kew Gardens

A cold, dull and misty winters day is perhaps not the ideal weather to explore the new 'Tree Walk' erected this year at Kew Gardens. Yet despite the grim weather there is something rather beautiful about this structure. MarksBarfield Architects have created a structure within the breathtaking setting of Kew Gardens that seems to sit just right. The materials have a resounding feel of quality and fit in with the landscape beautifully. The pylons in their 'weathered' finish do not look at all out of place amongst the tree trunks in this area. The walkway structure itself plays homage to nature being constructed with reference to the Fibonacci sequence which supports many natural growth patterns.

By winter the structure is fully revealed, while by summer tree branches will reach out over and onto the walkway giving the treetop experience it was intended for.

While the installation could perhaps be longer it is certainly fit for purpose and well worth a visit.

Focus directions and Blog tagging

Visitors to this blog will notice that I am not using tagging to categorise the topics I have covered on this page. This will make it easier for everyone to find any particular entries and filter down the topics that interest them.
These tagged categories also reveal the particular directions that I am aiming to look at and cover in particular detail on this blog.
As is already the case I intend to continue to build up an array of case studies from landscape architecture sites which I have personally visited, hopefully these will include some of my own views on the project and some photographs. While these will largely be from within the London area I do also aim to focus on any other project sites I do happen to stumble across.
Another priority, and closely linking with that discussed above is to look at and monitor some of the implications of 'Private Public Space'- that is spaces which are privately owned but claim to be open for public use. Sometimes the extent of being public spaces can vary, one which I commonly note as a photographer are the occasions where, for no apparent reason, photographs are not allowed on certain pieces of land. There are of course management and maintenance issues also connected with the ownership of land. As a general rule privately owned spaces tend to receive better maintenance and contain increased security.
The final area I will be looking at in more detail is the use of digital media in landscape architecture work. I have experimented with several types of software and aim to continually broaden my use of different packages- experience of this should be detailed on this blog.
Hopefully these changes and the newly created corridors to focus my attention on should make this blog even more exciting (yes... I think it is possible!).

Digital Media in Presentation

This post may seem slightly unusual in that it does not relate directly to any site with significant landscape architecture. However when working in this field one of the most important decisions to get right is how to present a project- and the correct media to use. The expectation seems to have moved dramatically over a short period from the majority of work being done by hand to a majority instead being digitalised.
These changes can be reflected in much of the work I do. I am far more likely to turn to my copy of Adobe Photoshop than to pick up a pen and start sketching. Of course there is a balance and one must not become complement with computers, however some of the recent work I have produced does show what an impact they can have.
One project recently involved building a short animation series using Adobe Flash. While this programme is initially very difficult to master it does, once the basic commands are understood, become a simple case of matching the correct codes with the correct functions in the files. After a lot of hard work I had an interactive document which I was very pleased with, and which will be far more accessible to a client or indeed anyone with an interest than the paper copies I tried to present previously.

Chiswick Buisiness Park

Chiswick Buisiness Park is an intersting new development in south west London. The philosophy of the site is to increase workers productivity by producing a pleasant environment in which to work and thus making office workers enjoy work. The site represents a major landscape architecture project as the 12 office buildings are set amongst a newly landscaped park complete with a major water feature. This site is open to the public as a park although there is little encoragement for the public to actually cross the security threshold into the site itself. Although the park has been aranged to be a tranquil retreat from the working day- and does indeed have many well thought out features- it seems very much a 'false' environment. For example the scale of the waterfall would be quite unheard of in this part of the country. That said the finish of materials appears very high and I am sure this space represents a vast improvement over the traditional office environment and is well used by those who work there. However the very buisiness nature of the site together with the high security prescense must hugely limit it's use as a public ameinity. It is also worth noteing that very little information is given about the site as a park on the website- despite it's heavy appearance in photographs.
Chiswick Park Website

Paddington to the Kings Road- Focus Week

November brought about another of Kingston University Landscape department's 'Focus Week Walks'- this time from Paddington to the Kings Road.
We began the walk at Paddington Basin- an area I know well having proposed alterations to a site here the previous year. That said it is always interesting to return to an area you know to see what has changed. Development is rapid in this area and there are always new things to see. One of the most noticeable differences was the disappearance of Thomas Heatherwick's rolling bridge. It was removed during the summer of 2008 as it stopped working, initially it was intended to be returned but since this has not happened it's future is now somewhat unsure.

The next stop on the days itinerary was Hyde Park, one of London's magnificent Royal Parks. Our particular interest here was the Diana Memorial Fountain, but Gustafson Porter. Unfortunately we chose the wrong time to visit as the work was closed for repairs! Clearly this is one project I will have to come back to.

The next port of call was the John Madejski courtyard garden at the Victoria & Albert Museum. The design was by Kim Wilkie who one an international design competition. The space is described as being 'based on the traditional simplicity of a garden courtyard with the drama and flexibility of a stage set'. This space is very popular during the summer but was not shown to it's prime on this dull November day. The design features a series of fountains around a central flooded depression- this area can also be drained for event uses. The area surrounding this is grassed with traditional pots and grass areas (also closed for maintenance). Once again I feel I would need to visit this site on a day with more promising weather to judge its success.

Just down the road from the V&A is the Natural History museum. For the winter season an area in front of the museums entrance has been converted to an ice rink- this really shows the transformation that can be achieved by activating a space. The area which is usual little used was bustling with people skating,
watching the action or just enjoying a hot drink in the temporary cafe on the site.

Our final port of call for the day was the Duke of York Square outside the new Sacchi Gallery on the Kings Road. By this point in the day the light was drawing in and the rain falling with increasing menace. Once again this location employs quality materials which give a resilient and pleasing finish. There are concrete ledges across the site acting as benches without the usually expected defined bench shape. Again a site which would have strong attraction when the weather permitted it!

London Wetland Centre

November is perhaps not the best time to visit the London Wetland Centre in Barnes, however despite many of the native birds having migrated away a visit was duely made. The wildfoul centre was created on the site of a former water works and covers 43 acres on the edge of London. The site has a population of more than 180 species of birds as well as bats and other wildlife. Visitors are invited to view the wildlife from a series of 'hides' built into paths around the centre which offer views of the wetlands. Other areas include the themed 'world wetlands' showing snippits of different wetland environments from across the globe.

A large part of the work carried out at the Wetland Centre is in educating visitors and for this purpose there is a large visitor centre with interactive activities for children, also including a theatre showing a video of the history of the site.

Although the wetland centre did have a lot to offer I feel a lot of the information presented could have been done so in a more friendly form. The information about plant and animal speicies was often limited and presented in a form that was more likely to appeal to children. I left with an impression that although interesting the site had little to offer unless one was a birdwatcher or young child.

Royal Victoria Square

Close to Thames Barrier Park in London's Docklands is another innovative landscape site.

Like Thames Barrier Park, Royal Victoria Dock was conceived by the LDDC (London Docklands Development Commission) and is situated on the north bank of Victoria Dock. There are many comparisons between this site and Thames Barrier Park, due largely to the fact that parts of the design team were the same.

This site has a particular focus on history and is dominated by the huge former dock cranes which have been retained and tower over the space. Features such as the regimented blocks of trees are reminiscent of Mile End Park, while the structures have a similar minimalist feel to them. Unfortunately this site too seems to lack visitors. Despite being adjacent to the entrance to the Excel exhibition centre there were barely any people using the area on my visit. This made the site seem very distant and impersonal- particularly the large patch of rough empty grass at it's heart.

Some of the detailing here is very good, however the space still seems to lack purpose and no resounding feeling of quality comes through. Many of the ground surfaces appear unattractive also. In fact I believe that the site itself takes the backseat as the dock cranes and the impressive bridge across Victoria Dock capture all the attention.

A Brief Look at Europe

Although it may not look much, this really grabbed my attention. During some works on a public square in Frankfurt the railings have been covered in a photographic canvas- and what a vast improvement it makes over leaving all the building works visible. This fence becomes more of a feature than the usual eyesore.





These boardwalks in Zurich provided an attractive peaceful walk along the banks of the river, set down at a level close to the water. At certain times of year they can flood, forcing pedestrians
to use a higher level path. They provide a great contrast to the busy city despite being just behind the main streets and make one feel at home with the natural river environment.



This interesting square is situated outside Milan's Cadorna Station. The large abstract sculptures are of a needle and thread which disappears under the road only to reappear among jets of water in a large central fountain. Also note the tram- I became rather obsessed with these amazing rickety old things!




Probably the most interesting Landscape site of the trip was in Marseilles, close to the harbour. A large site had been graded with a variety of steps slopes and levels. Many interesting pieces of furniture had also been used to provide seating areas and to screen walls. Perhaps the most interesting element of all was a terrace which was covered in equally spaced 'oversized' pots. Each pot was taller than myself and rather than containing the usual plants instead was occupied by a sizable tree.

Summer Fun on the South Bank

London's South Bank comes alive in the summer with installations and exhibitions- many of which are free. Here are a few snippets that captured my interest this summer.

'Volume'
This interactive artwork was created by United Visual Artists and spent some time on the terrace outside the Royal Festival Hall this summer. The piece reacted with people walking around the area which stimulated sounds and lighting displays on the light towers.
I have to admit that I could not work out how interactions were causing the piece to respond, but never the less, I did enjoy the work. It was visually pleasing and watching the way in which an audience interacted with it was quite fascinating.

'Appearing Rooms'
An water fountain display created by Danish artist Jeppe Hein also ocupied a space on the Festival Hall terrace this summer. This installation was really fun and very much appreciated by younger children on hot summers days. The installation is formed of a cube of water fountains, created from four smaller cubes. Each side is controlled independantly and can turn on and off. This creates, reforms and removes 'rooms' with walls of water. These can trap people within them and even take them by suprise whilst moving through the fountains.

'Watch This Space'
This installation was positioned outside the main entrance to the National Theatre as part of their summer programme of events. The concept was quite simple- to make a fun space which could be used for a variety of events, or just as a nice location to spend time. In practise this involved creating a larger than life 'grass' room from an astroturf material. The piece included a larger than life 3-piece suite, lamp and a large rug, complete with over-large cushions. On a hot day the space worked fantastically, with the entire area thronging with people relaxing, socialising or even using the space as a picknic area. Even by night on barmy evenings people were still using this intriguing space, which due to the popularity of the area felt quite safe as there were always people passing through.

'Psycho Buildings'
The 'Psycho Buildings' exhibition at the Hayward Gallery represented artists interpretations of Architecture. The results were a very interesting collection of visual and spacial installations which challenged our relatioship with the space around us. My favorite instatllation at this exhibition was 'Show Room, 2008' by Los Carpinteros of Havana, Cuba. The piece depicts a room frozen in a moment of time of a disaster where the interior is being destroyed and scattered at random. The juxtaposition of the stillness in this image of sheer devastation provokes a curiously unatural responce. This work may certainly influence my design work for in the future, if even only in terms of the construction of the piece with items suspended from above.
Another quite unatural experience on offer here was in 'Normally , Proceeding and Unrestricted With Without Title, 2008' by Gelitin. This installation filled one of the Hayward Galleries terraces with water to create a small boating lake in whicn one could row across the skyline of London. Despite the fact that the creation was slightly victimised by it's own sucsess (it was so popular people had to que for the experience rather than stumbling across it by chance) the spectacle of rowing with views of the London skyline with the River Thames below you has to be quite unique!

The Great Gardens of Cornwall

During the summer I was lucky enough to spend some time in Cornwall (unfortunatly I was not lucky enough for the weather to be nice during this time!). The landscape of this entire county on this peninsula of Great Britain makes fantastic viewing from it's breathtaking coastline to the artificial china clay mounds which dominate the area around St Austel. However the two locations I am going to detail are perhaps the most breathtaking of all: The Lost Gardens of Heligan and the Eden Project.

The Lost Gardens of Heligan-

This has to be one of the most radical garden restoration projects anywhere in the country. The glamourous family owned gardens here were left to rot in 1914 for three quarters of a centuary untill their discovery in 1990. Since then the site has been restored to it's former glory, including many of the original buildings, trees and plant species which are so unique to the gardens. The range of garden styles here is extensive. From long scenic 'rides' to woodland wildernesses, formal gardens and kitchen gardens, with a range of rare or exotic plants including the famously huge 'Californian Redwood' trees and one of the largest collections of tree ferns in the area.

The Eden Project-

The hisotry of the Eden Project as a garden streaches back significantly less than the gardens of Heligan. Opening as a Millenium project in 2000 the Eden Project with it's distinctive biomes was built on the site of a former China Clay pit to showcase and increase knowledge of the worlds environments. The two huge biomes dominate the site and contain collections of platns from the tropics and mediteranian regions. Outdoors are more hardy plants from our own climate. The site is intended to be educational and as such there are various oppertunities to interact with the exhibits and learn more about them. The site also includes several spaces which can be used for various purposes including The Core building with it's organically shaped roofline which is used as an exhibition space.

Overall the site has a lot going on, and I think it is for this reason that it really does come across as a tourist attraction rather than a refreshing and enjoyable space. This may be no bad thing- afterall the site IS a tourist attraction. However on a busy summers day I did not find it very tranquil or peaceful due to the number of visitors. That said the staggering site does not dissapoint, though it is perhaps the shape of the site and the structures within it which form the biggest attraction.

A space close to home

It is always a pleasant experience to discover a wonderful space right on your doorstep, particularly when you may stumble across it quite by accident. I recently discovered a space just like this within my own University at Kingston. Lurking just beyond the 'eating and drinking' area of the Penrhyn Road Library lies the outdoor reading space, a hard, restricted site with buildings dominating all four sides. However the quality of materials used in the area really does make the space very pleasant. The benches are of wooden construction and follow interesting patterns, while decking material and gravel is used to give texture underfoot. the uninspiring walls are contrasted with a collection of fantastic tree ferns which dominate the area and provide a vertical dynamic as well as some much needed green foliage.
This I feel is truly a space the University should be proud of- so why is it not publicised? I stumbled across the space quite by accident and I am sure many Library users do not know it exists. It is also perhaps a missed opportunity that the highly skilled students from the Landscape Architecture department at the University were not involved in designing the space (though I would happily be corrected if they were)- this could have been a perfect small project for the students and could have saved the University from the additional costs of hiring external designers.

Thames Barrier Park

Thames Barrier park is located on the northern bank of the River Thames adjacent to the Thames Barrier (as the name would suggest). The site was designed by French Landscape Architect Alain Provost of Groupe Signes in partnership with ARUP. The site was previously occupied by heavy industry leaving issues of contamination to be dealt with in the design.
The park despite being located away from the centre of the city could not be easier to reach. Pontoon Dock DLR station overlooks the park which is at it's footsteps, making the space easilly accessible from both the city and other areas of the Docklands.
The central feature of the park is a former dock which runs through it's heart at a lower level than the surrounding land. This has been beautifully planted with waving hedges and a variety of foliage- although there is limited access to this lower level it is well worth a visit. The park seems to be split into two sections above this area with bridges spanning across the lower dock. Many of these higher areas are left unmown as a meadow of long grass, together with the contrast of the short grassy paths and trees this works very well and keeps a natural feel to the area which could otherwise give an overal impression of being filled with concrete angles.
The architectual elements of the site work well also, there is a structure providing some shelter next to the water front as well as a cafe centrally located within the park. It's structure seems to float above it's nearby grassy areas, though is rather less attractive after closing when heavy roller-shutters cover it's glass facards. It is a sad fact too that the park has to be designed to minimalise vandalisim in such ways- the signs indicating the the wiring in the fences has no scrap value make an unsightly reminder of the atmosphere or much of the land away from this oasis of peace.
As a general overview I rate this site very highly, it is interesting, generally well maintained and a good size to wander around and spend leisure time in (though the provision of a few more benches would not hurt).
One final note should be made of the sorry state of affairs at the water feature of fountains which people could play in- if they were not fenced off and labled as 'closed for the season due to vandalism'- it is unclear if this is the current season or the previous one!
The best way to experience this park is to visit it- you will not be dissapointed.

Brentford Biopsy

On the 8th May a visit was arranged to the Watermans Art Centre in Brentford to take part in a workshop related to the 'Brentford Biopsy' project on display. The group was already familiar with the area due to our work with the nearby Watermans Park where we had been developing Landscape proposals.
The Brentford Biopsy exhibiton, created by artist Christian Nold relates to peoples feelings and perceptions of Brentford and includes some unusual mapping and analysis techniques. The group was split into two with each conducting a different excercise. One group was split into pairs, with one person blindfolded and earplugged there perceptions of the area were recoreded using the remaning senses of smell and touch. Meanwhile other members of the group were dispatched into the town wired up to a sensor and GPS handset. The purpose of this kit was to record feelings and reactions towards the experiences people had while in Brentford and then to use the GPS system to create a map of the route they had taken, picking out the emotional responces which were felt along the way. Both analysis methods held some interesting results which we had not considered at the beginning of the day. The activity certinally has the potential to enrich future landscape analysis.
Further details about the Brentford Biopsy exhibition are available at http://www.watermans.org.uk/take_part/brentford_biopsy/

First Sights- Weald & Downland Museum and Littlehampton

The story of this first sights day on 7th May really has to have been the weather! With soaring temperatures and a beautiful cloudless sky fourteen landscape architects piled onto a minibus to head south. The destination was unknown... but we all longed to end up at the seaside!
A little while later and we arrived at the Weald & Downland Open Air Museum near Chichester. The museum is an ecclectic collection of ancient buildings which have been salvaged from across this region of southern england and re-erected at the museum. The buildings include many common sights from an ancient village including a mill, blacksmith and of course residentual buildings. One of the highlights of our visit was to view the 'Gridshell' building, constructed by Edward Cullinan Architects, and completed in 2002. This curvacious 'green' structure is used to house the museums extensive collection of artefacts and also to provide a large workshop space. The building is a modern timber framed design, with wooded beams streaching the length and breadth of the building in a grid pattern in a shape resembling an egg shell pattern. The building is very efficient- designed to use a minimum of energy and to elliminate the need for lighting in the upper floor during daylight hours. The structure of the building is fascinating and it is interesting to see and hear how it was build and the challenges which were faced along the way. It also responds well to the environment with a natrual wood cladding and sinuous lines blending the structure into the hillside.


Having enjoyed a pleasant coulpe of hours at the museum we boarded the minibus for our other destination- the seaside! The primary purpose of the visit was to view the 'East Beach Cafe' on Littlehamptons seafront, designed by Heatherwick Studio. The cafe was a replacement for a common white-washed seafront structure, and is as big a contrast as is possible. The modern metal structure is layered to avoid flat surfaces and has an open face to the sea where shutters can be brought down over the cafe. The structure is certinally architecturally intersting, and makes a statement within the costal landscape, however I personally do not like it's form which seems rather out of place for the area.
Finally with the days work complete it was time to get on the beach and enjoy the sunshine!

The Salutation- Sandwich, Kent

Part of my assesment for my History and Cultural studies module involved writing an essay on the works of Landscape Architect Gurtrude Jekyll, her gardens and her relationship with architedt Edwyn Lutyens. Sadly Jekyll's premiere garden at her home, Munstead Wood, had not opened for the season- so instead I made a trip to The Salutation in Sandwich Kent to see another example of her work. The gardens here are unique in that it was Lutyens rather than Gekyll who carried out the majority of the design work, though the influence of Jekyll is clearly evident. The gardens are in the process of a complete restoration by the buildings current owners and opened to the public in 2007. The gardens here follow an architectural layout, often mirroring the rooms of the adjacent house. Fortunatly the weather for my visit was beautiful- and there was even some spare time afterwards for a walk along the beach in nearby Deal.

Landscape Animation

Part of my work for the Rotterdam project involved creating a short animation which would be suitable for uploading to a competition by the Student Landscape Institute Council (SLIC) http://slic.info/. I experimented with various techniques to put the animation together, including Adobe Photoshop before settling on Adobe Flash. The short animation features sections using photographs, moving plans and finally some models which I had made for the project. Once I had created the animated files I then stitched the scenes together in Adobe Premier.

Rotterdam Field Trip

Our first year Landscape field trip took us overseas to Holland to visit it's dynamic capital- Rotterdam. This city is known for it's interesting and cutting edge architectural and landscape design. Having visited briefly the previous summer I was aware of some of the interesting features of the city, including the large site developed by West 8 in the heart of the city- the Schouwburgplein. This large site was developed over a new underground multi-storey car park in the heart of the city. The site features three oversized hydraulic moving light which dominate the site. These took influence from the port activities of the city. The site can appear slightly sparse, but is also capable of being a functional space for events.
The National Architecture Institute (NAI) is an interesting point of call for a trip around the city, also conveniently located close to the Museum Park, which contains an interesting landscaped area based on the ideas of fluvioglaciation. Attached the the NAI is the Sonnivald House, a perfectly preserved example of 1930's ultramodern house.
Wandering round the city is a very useful way to spend an afternoon, admiring some of the cities maritime past alongside some of the pioneering and groundbreaking modern developments such as the cube houses at Blaak.
A trip to the Euromast is a must for any visit to the city. The tower rises 101m, with an additional 85m lift carrying passengers to dizzy heights above the city. On a clear day vast views are afforded- unfortunately ours was not so, but the trip was none the less worthwhile.

Half way through the excursion the group took a valuable excursion to the Europort, the worlds largest containerport. This combined with a trip along the River Maas provided us with an excellent grounding into the citys past, and the strategic relationship with the port and shipping activities.

Our final day in featured a visit to The Hague, towards the coast of the country. This one time capital features a mix of old and new buildings, as the impact of World War II was less severe here. Finally the afternoon was spent visiting the waterfront site on which our following project would be based.

Mile End Park

On 4th January I took a visit to the widely acclaimed Mile End Park in east London. The main landscape consultants for the project, which completed for the millennium were Tibbalds Monroe.
One of the most interesting, and noticeable features of the park is a bright yellow bridge which carries the green space across the busy Mile End Road. This was my first sight of the park, towering over the traffic- certainly an imposing vision, but not overly pleasing architecturally.
Once inside the park there were some obvious issues of maintenance which proved disappointing.
In many areas the grass has been eroded away as people have followed their own lines of desire across the grass, rather than following the paths. As I continued my journey around the park I did myself have to question the use of the laid out paths- they did not often seem to be logically placed, and in some cases came to total dead ends. The entire network also seems to be geared for use by many more visitors than exist- particularly the segregated pedestrian and cycle paths.
To the north of the bridge lay the biggest disappointment the park had to offer, a mound with a stepped wooden side. The only way to the top by a spiral path was difficult to locate, and it was clear most peoples method of reaching summit was to go straight up over the grass- making a mess of it in the process. Once at the top there was simply nothing there. Unless, of course, you count a small mound of sorry looking content as 'something'. Although I find myself speaking negatively about the environment, there is a lot that the park does achieve very well. The sweeping curved paths do act as a catalyst to move people along this long thin space, and there are a very wide variety of different features within the park designed for a variety of user groups.
Back south of the bridge the landscape is slightly more conventional- and this is no bad thing. A park does need by it's nature to have areas of open space which people can enjoy. At the extreme south of the site is a large sports centre and associated playing courts. Near to this is also a centre aimed at the youth of the area, and a play area, with a slight difference to what I was expecting. It was designed for 11-17 year olds. This is not the usual age group that play equipment in parks is designed for, and I think this is one thing that Mile End Park has opened my eyes to, some of the equipment here looked really fun! It was well designed, well maintained, and attractive to the age group it was designed for. You can guess what came next- I had to try it!

EDCO Design- First Sights Profile Practise
Having spent some time looking for an appropriate landscape architecture practise to look into I discovered London based EDCO Design. Originally I had looked at several practises, including David Jarvis Associates http://www.davidjarvis.biz/, but found the available resources on their website limiting, and I could not find enough information to locate any of their projects in the London area. Having decided that local projects I could visit myself would be an important part of my practise profile I searched for landscape architecture projects within London, and hence found EDCO Design.

The company's website http://www.edcodesign.com/ instantly gave me a good first impression of the practise. It has a simple, yet pleasing layout setting out clearly the contents of the website, giving an overview of the company and displaying a slide show of photographs from some of their successful projects. Reading the company overview I appreciated many of the company values already. The company states they are 'dedicated to landscape and urban design' and made it clear that they are interested in both creative solutions, their implementation and the following maintenance they would require.
The company is lead by two directors- Tony Edwards and David Coombes, who are said to take a personal approach to leading each project the company undertakes. Their credentials also appealed with the pair collectively having attained qualifications in landscape design, architecture and geography. In line with most landscape architects the company pride itself on the positive moves they are making towards sustainable environments and social well being.
The company usefully has a large number of its projects based in London and around the London area, as well as having it's offices in Raynes Park.
Some of this practises projects I am most interested in include:

• Regents Place Masterplan (under construction), London
• Fairlands Valley Park (under construction), Stevenage
• Ramsgate Seafront, Kent
• Triton Square, Regents Place, London
• Longford Square, London
• Greenwich Riverfront (under construction), London
• Merchant Square, Paddington Basin, London
• Heart of Slough (planning stage), Berkshire
• Euston Circus (planning stage), London

Files in PDF format are available to download from the website with further details on most of the projects the company is involved with.

Site visit- Triton Square

While in London I made a site visit to Triton Square, part of the Regents Place development along the Euston Road. This is a fantastic area to visit for anyone interested in this practise as along with Triton Square itself- which was my reason for visiting, Longford Square, and Euston Circus (a future project for EDCO) are both within a few minutes walk. I entered the site through Longford Square- where I was quickly picked up on by the security personnel for taking photographs. Having ascertained that I needed permission to take photographs, and that they were 'not about to give permission having just turned up' and that I would actually need to write to them, explaining exactly who I was, why I wanted photographs and exactly what of... I was released back into the site. I shall complain further about the security of these supposedly 'public' sites on another occasion. Having progressed underneath one of the modern office buildings on the development (managed by The British Land Company Plc) I entered Triton Square. The square is a very interesting contemporary space- which won a 2004 Civic Trust award. It is dominated on three sides by modern office developments, and on the fourth by the Euston Road. EDCO Design have kept a largely angular approach to the main aspects of the site, including continuing the lines of the buildings by using LED lighting set into the floor. One particularly interesting feature is a raised planer containing trees. This is raised significantly above the square and looks quite surreal. As well as the harsh angles of much of the site, curves are introduced with an interesting sinuous grass structure along the border with the Euston Road. Lighting is a key element of this site- which was beginning to really show at the time of my visit, as the days light was slowly fading from the sky. A selection of different lighting methods have been used, including a stunning elevated lit artwork, adorned to the side of one of the buildings. EDCO Design describe the square as 'a high voltage space' which 'buzzes with interaction between users and the built environment'. I would certainly agree that these statements are correct as the space did seem to be well used by a range of people, and the lighting does certainly add interest. I would anticipate the site takes on rather a different atmosphere during the day, when I intend to re-visit in the future [perhaps with permission to take photographs?!].

Gardenvisit- The Garden Landscape Guide comment that 'The square is visually dramatic. It opens to the sun and the south but it is engulfed by noise from the Euston Road and battered by gusting winds generated by the high buildings.' Other than the inescapable noise from the Euston Road, the sunlight and wind factors were not ones which I considered on my own visit due to the nature of the weather. I would certainly agree about the dramatic nature of the space.

It is clearly a testament to this space that EDCO design have the contract to produce the Regents Place Masterplan, expanding Triton square and it's themes into the growing surrounding office development. It will be interesting to see how this, and other schemes of this forward thinking company develop.

Before leaving the site there was just time to take a few more photographs (from the public pavement of Euston Road- where I was untouchable to the sites security!).

First Sights Week- East London

1st November 2007
My Birthday!!!
And also the date of our second visit of First Sights Week. This time our destination was London's East End- could it possibly be more fun that Kew?
The day started interestingly at Knights Park with a grand total of three turning up to accompnany Simon for the journey up to London. We hoped some more would be meeting us at the Barbican. Sure enough a further small group of students was assembeled with Ed and the days entertainment could begin (I think I had already driven Simon mad by this point).
The first destination was the monolythinc Barbican Centre. I am in two minds about this construction. On one side I think it is possibly one of the most ugly building complexes in London- but at the same time I can see it's purpose, and within it's structure there are some very interesting spaces. I guess it must fall into the category of places that 'nearly' work- with good ideas... but it's just not all there. The walk round london then continued towards St Paul's and the 'wobbly bridge' and on into the city, stopping at various landscapes along the way. Many of these were great contrasts to eachother and each was inspiring in it's own way. I was dissapointed to discover that one site did not like me with my camera. Surely public spaces should be public- and if I want to take a photograph of the space, it should be my right to do so. Apparently not- acording to the security man. Who then followed me just incase I started snapping again as soon as he turned his back (which admitedly I would have done had he gone away!). The journey took us on through the heart of the city past inspiring buildings including the Lloyds Building and the 'Ghurkin'. Outside Liverpool St Station we paused for lunch and enjoyed an 'interesting' inpromptu performance of street dance- and my Dad turned up randomly. The afternoon took us on through Brick Lane to the 'City Farm' which was a breath of freash air from the bustling city. With the days entertainment almost concluded we retired to a bar in Hoxton. And stayed there for a little while. Finally on to an interesting piece of landscape at Old Street- which did not seem to be working very well.
A trip back to Waterloo on the bus and goodbye to another fun day in London. On to the festivities of my birthday...

First Sights Week- Kew

30 October 2007
Our first destination of 'First Sights Week' was to the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew. Despite some initial frustration at having to pay the unearthly fee of £5 to park my car, the day settled down to prove valuably interesting.
The gardens are simply vast in size, and as one wanders through paths the atmosphere is ever changing from areas of formal planting to secluded woodlands. Also in the park at the time was a large collection of sculptures by Henry Moore- adding even greater interest to some of the scenes through the vegitation.
Autumn, while not the best time to visit for flowers, the colours afforded by the leaf fall season are truely spectacular with all shades from green to yellow, orange into red and brown in abundance both on the trees and carpeting the floor.
The environment of the glass houses is also quite spectacular, providing unique tropical climates on the inside, and a huge beautiful landmarks of iron and glass from the outside.
Of course the weather behaiving itself did aid the days visit, from which the entire group surely benefited.
Pictures to follow.

The first blog post

It seems an awful long time since I last used good old blogger.
It is an awful long time. A year and three months acording to the date on the last post of my old blog.
Well, this is about the most fun I have had in the last 10 minutes. Sitting in the CAD lab at the wonderful Knights Park contemplating changing my template.
I may write something slightly more useful later, but at least this will give me the oppertunity to see how the posts will appear within the template.
What the hell- lets have a random photo as well?