HEAVENLY GARDENS IN HELLISH PLACES
Saturday 3rd October 2009
Imperial College, Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London SW7 1LU
The garden is a form of earthly paradise that designers are often called upon to create in the most unpromising and inhospitable of places. Such sites include steep slopes, exposed roofs, windswept coastlines and urban sites plagued by poor soils and pollution, all in an increasingly extreme climate. Difficult sites create the greatest challenge but can instil the greatest creative response.
While paradise is the intent, a designer's first challenge is practical; to make sense of the space, to make it usable and to select plants that will grow and survive long term. In improving the habitat for people and plants, the design solution makes the occupation of such difficult spaces enjoyable and uplifting too.
THE SPEAKERS
Lisa Delplace, Principal and CEO of the renowned Oehme van Sweden practice, has extensive knowledge of ecological processes and her deep commitment to their artistic execution inform her approach to landscape architecture. Her personal commissions include the Chicago Botanic Garden in Glencoe, Illinois, which incorporates the sculpted shoreline of the Great Basin. This has been described as “an outstanding example of the informal New American Garden style pioneered by Wolfgang Oehme and James van Sweden. Mr. van Sweden describes the style as gardens of freedom and ease, where wildlife, plant life and human life coexist in harmony." (Garden Talk, Chicago Botanic Garden, September/October 2002)
As for creating heaven from hell, she has worked in some of the most inhospitable places on earth, including the fourteen-acre United States Embassy site in Kabul, Afghanistan. Gardens in Katmandu, Nepal, and the Ukraine provided several unusual challenges as did turning swamp land into garden in South Carolina. www.ovsla.com
Anthony Paul’s design at Tillingford; photo by M. Paul
Anthony Paul comes from New Zealand and now lives in the UK, and has been designing landscapes on slippery slopes around the world for 30 years. He is internationally recognised for his innovative and contemporary gardens and has just been announced the 2009 winner of the Torsanlorenzo International Prize for his Tony Stone Garden in Provence. www.anthonypaullandscapedesign.com
Declan Buckley is an Irish designer living in central London. He has tackled urban, rural and coastal sites in areas as diverse as Mumbai, Belgium and Kent. His approach to landscape design is informed by his knowledge of other creative disciplines; after studying architecture and design, he was an award winning graphic designer and art director in Dublin, San Franciso and London. www.buckleydesignassociates.com
Paul Dracott has won many awards for his clean, contemporary style with designs ranging from funky courtyards to elegant country gardens. He lectures in garden design and construction at the KLC School of Design, writes for magazines and has had gardens featured in many design books. His gardens have been selected for both Future Gardens 2009 (the Exoskeleton) and Wisley. www.pdgardendesigns.co.uk
Dr Nigel Dunnett combines a background of horticulture and ecology to undertake research, practice and teaching in the Department of Landscape, University of Sheffield. His work focuses on innovative approaches to design and management of plantings in gardens, urban parks, and on and around buildings and in high-density built development. www.nigeldunnett.co.uk
The day will be chaired by landscape designer Julie Toll. Julie has achieved international fame for her natural gardens and has won six Gold Medals at the Chelsea Flower Show www.julietoll.co.uk
