Something I found surprising or interesting was the designers want to to use different colors not only in plant , but also the material. I feel like using lots of color is often avoided because it is easy to mess up. The reason why this surprised me was because often in public place color is used, but only in small doses. I also think color is avoided because neutrals are more likely to appeal to more people. Color can have baggage attached to it , or ways it makes someone read an area. Colors and combinations of different colors have been found to effect peoples emotions.

Using water as a way to reflect surroundings is a process that can be well represented by the 3,450 square foot pool designed by the French architect Michel Corajoud. The pool is only a few inches deep , but has become a gathering area for tourists and locals on hot summer days. This has become a place for reflection and playfulness. It is beautiful on its own , but also frames or exemplifies the qualities of the 18th century surrounding it. The pool has become a beacon for people to come near and interact while taking in the historic buildings surrounding it. Another place that uses water as a mirror is the reflection pond in the Bloedel Reserve. The dark water reflects the beautiful trees in the distance. It is a simple design , but reflecting an image can frame that site in a different way.

“More Than Green Water Mirror: A Place to Cool off in Bourdeaux -.” More Than Green, 7 May 2020, morethangreen.es/en/water-mirror-a-place-to-cool-off-in-bourdeaux/.

Relate-During this course we have read different readings that have taken talked about the opinions or beliefs of different people throughout history. Some of the conclusions from archeologists and the writer seem more like an opinion than actual fact. For example in the reading seven ways of looking at a mountain, some of the assumptions they make on the Aztec culture seem logical, but a few a the things seemed like they were trying to make connections just to give something. The talk about the rulers opinions and the symbolic significance of some of the structures. Did the ruler really believe that way or did those mountains really symbolize those things? In this field I feel like it is very easy to make conclusions to try and fit the design.. Especially when talking about the history of a site, it should be truthful and not altered to better fit the design.

Respond- I think American architecture is not as clearly defined as other cultures because it is a mixture of other influences. Style of American architecture can be broken down into periods of thinking or designing, but the overall look of it cannot be put into one category. I think other culture's architecture is often talked about more because it is what influenced American architecture.

Relate- In Landscape Architecture how do we know when to protect past landscape designs and will the designs we make last 100 years from now. Will the new park that is designed make the other parks in the community become abandoned? Will our designs fall victim to being demolished or forgotten? This is something that is on my mind a lot. For example , we are designing with mediums that are constantly changing. Our landscapes if not properly maintained can become overgrown and can often lose the design intention. Also, we will most likely have to redesign areas that were once designed by someone else. This isn't bad, but how do we know when the design intention or aesthetic should be preserved? I understand if it is not a good design, but would we more likely keep a landscape if the designer had a well know name even if it didn't work with the space anymore?

Contextualize- This reminded me of Birmingham's decision to destroy the old train terminal. Designed by P. Thornton Mayre. The building was a byzantine inspired structure that was opened in 1909 and was one of the busiest train stations in the south. It had to be uniquely designed and often changed on the inside to keep up with the segregation laws in Alabama. By the 1960 the train station was shut down due to the major decrease in train travel. The city tried to find other uses for the property like an office building and aviation museum , but it didn't work. What is frustrating about the demolition of this beautiful icon building described by stories and pictures is that Birmingham today needs another icon. Birmingham has Vulcan, Sloss, and a few photo opportunities, but really lacks a tourist point for people of state. I think if the movement of revitalizing old buildings was as prominent as it is today the train station could have been saved. Who knows maybe it could have been a way to improve public transportation in Birmingham, but I definitely think it could have been a place to gather the community rather than separate it. This is speculation on what the Train station could have been, but I understand the concern that Cooper writes about. I'm not saying that everything has to become a museum, but we should try to protect or re- envision places to work for future generations.

jgray@al.com, Jeremy Gray |. “How Birmingham's Iconic Terminal Station Was Lost to a Wrecking Ball in 1969.” Al, 20 Feb. 2020, www.al.com/news/erry-2018/10/f94dfa70dc6764/how-birminghams-iconic-termina.html.

Contextualize- Francis Boaz believed in diffusionism as a way that all cultural traits are important to the society and their innovations. He explains the idea of common traits or advances of societies spread wide apart are from the common traits that those societies have in their culture. He also believed that the culture of a society is dependent on the environment and anything that the society comes into contact with. Common innovations are a process of the cultures growth through experience and necessity,

Diffusionism and Acculturation. (2017, April 24). Retrieved October 29, 2020, from https://anthropology.ua.edu/theory/diffusionism-and-acculturation/

Relate: I think this idea of showing the true nature of something relates back to how we show renderings. With digital renderings it's easy to copy and paste png's of perfect trees from the internet. The trees usually downloaded are pictures of species that have grown in full sun with nothing crowding it. The trunks are straight, and the canopy looks manicured. What is hard to find are png's of trees that truly capture the character of the species. Capturing the true quality of the species on the cite I feel like is one of the best ways to connect it back to the area that is being rendered. For example, an Eastern Red Cedar grown in perfectly manicured conditions would resemble in some ways a Christmas tree. But when it is competing for light the branches open in an interesting way that makes it look like it is curling. As landscape Architects the drawings should show some hints of the characteristics that are unique to the species. Not just the perfectly manicured version of it.

Bonsai is a Chinese and Japanese technique of pruning and training of a tree so that it represents its species in the wild ,but condensed into a pot. Bonsai trees have been depicted in paintings since the Han Dynasty in 200BC. The culture around Bonsai trees emphasizes the the style of penjing. This is the practice of trying to replicate a scenery ,not with the exact materials or planting but through the characteristics of the site. The curation of Bonsia is not not just a tree in a pot but a representation of the species qualities in nature.

Lewis, Colin. “So What Is a Bonsai.” Bonsai Basics, by Colin Lewis, Hamlyn, 2008, pp. 12–19.

Respond- I understand what Kenko is saying about taking in the journey of something rather than the most engaging moments. His metaphor of the blossoms in full bloom I think could be looked at in a different way , that I feel like would encompass what he is saying on a larger scale. The blooming of a plant is an event but plays a bigger part in the ensemble of plants. The transitioning of blooms and leaves is the journey he talks about. The different major events throughout a season create a journey itself.

Relate- Boundaries of civilizations around the Nile have been determined by the land more than specific points. The lush ephemeral ecology around the Nile creates a juxtaposition to the Sahara next to it. Civilizations and activity have adapted and stuck to the vegetated areas around the Nile. In designing landscapes can we use the change in ecology as a barrier? Instead of using fences or hedges maybe using a very drastic change in style or ecology could be an indicator as a barrier of property change. Also, will people gravitate more to water than a dry landscape?

Contextualize- Cambyses's 50,000 soldiers lost to a sandstorm is still one of the greatest mysteries of all time. The Persian king Cambyses II sent his men across the Sahara to conquer what is today's Egypt. The story is that all 50,000 men where lost to a great sandstorm. Many believe this is a myth. Historians think this story could have actually been manifested to cover the defeat of the Persian army by a rebel army.

Singh, Kuldeep. “Where Is the Lost Army of Cambyses? How the Sahara 'Swallowed' 50,000 Soldiers.” Revyuh, 24 Dec. 2019, www.revyuh.com/top-news/featured/lost-army-cambyses-sahara-swallowed-50000-soldiers/.

Relate- Over a hundred years later and we are still making the same mistakes. We are still demolishing beautiful lands and leaving them bare. We still have a mentality of trying to colonize nature. We exploit it or try to tame it. From what we have read in the course we have learned about societies that had more of a symbiotic relationship with nature, but i think it will be a long time before western culture as a whole respects nature.

Contextualize- The long leaf pine ecosystem once covered 90 million acres. This has dwindled down to 3 percent of what it once was. This ecosystem was used for logging and left bare. No matter what humans are going to manipulate nature for some sort of self interest. I think the evolution of today agriculture I feel like is moving toward more sustainable systems for the long run and the health of the environment as a whole. For example Longleaf pine logging can be done without ruining the whole ecosystem. Methods like the Sherwood method only cut out the older trees in the grove , keeping the longleaf pine ecosystem in tact. It should be the goal of agriculture to not only provide resources , but improve the environment as whole.

Relate:

When talking about turf in the landscape I think there are a lot of levels to the idea of using it in the landscape. It is a complicated subject because it has become so ingrained into our culture. If it is using over 70 million tons of pesticides to manage it then how do, we reduce that and change the culture of these huge lawns. I don’t think that all lawns should be disposed of, but we could reduce the amount that is in the landscape. When I was working for a landscaping company there would be these huge hillsides of perfectly manicured turf that provided no recreation or real purpose to the design. I think if we reduces the amount of these areas , but also stopped trying to put turf in the wrong environments then they may not have as many problems with pests, or we could just reduce the amount of turf used. I also think the idea of not using turf in all areas should be advertised as something unique and prideful the same way turf was advertised.

Contextualize: The culture of turf has become a huge part of the American landscape culture. The idea of the perfect lawn is a symbol of status and control over nature. What is crazy though is how much money and water is invested into a crop that is only for visual effect. The Atlantic wrote an article on this culture and the lengths people go to maintain a lawn. More importantly though that talk about how hard it would be to change the minds of Americans and see what the consequences are from the way we maintain and implement lawns. "The problem is, though, that culture changes as gradually as grass grows quickly. Iconography is much harder to uproot than roots themselves. To give up our lawns would be, in some sense, to concede a kind of defeat—to nature, to the march of time, to the ecosystemic realities of the new century. It would require us to do something Americans have not traditionally been very good at: acknowledging our own limitations" (Garber, 2015).

Garber, Megan. “The American Lawn: A Eulogy.” The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, September 5, 2018. https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/08/the-american-lawn-a-eulogy/402745/.

Respond: I feel like Landscape Architects have a very different outlook on good and flawed landscapes compared to everyone else. The most clean cut lawns with a few crape myrtles seems perfect for most people in the south , but I think if you would suggest that to a landscape architect they would role their eyes. Landscape Architects find the beauty in things not everyone else would too. So can we really measure what a good landscape is if it is so relative?

Relate: This reminds me of ASLA's part in the Green New Deal. We are calling to action all Landscape Architects to implement this into our designs. It holding us accountable to try and create designs that are sustainable culturally and environmentally. It is a time of educating ourselves and people outside of the field on the effects of climate change. It is also encouraging new ideas and ways to push our past ideas to create sustainable landscapes. Similar to this passage it is saying that what we do in the field matters. The actions we make change history ,so we should be trying to change it for the better.

This idea of wastelands should be viewed as potential rather than a wasteland reminds me of the book Planting in a Post Wild World. I feel like the way he talks about Fens as a wasteland is similar of how our culture views meadows and the plants that inhabit disturbed sites. Our idea that a landscape must fit in a certain box ,and be repeated over and over we are missing out on the opportunity to create sustainable landscapes. I think testing the limits of a landscape rather than being restricted is how we can use the land in a symbiotic relationship rather than a us only receiving from nature to fit our needs.

Rainer, Thomas, and Claudia West. 2016. Planting in a Post-Wild World : Designing Plant Communities for Resilient Landscapes. Portland, Oregon Timber Press.

Respond: This reminds me of Chinese agriculture where they use terracing to help improve their practices. It would be interesting to see how much more they were able to cultivate compared to the other available land? I think it would also be interesting to see how these terraces were assembled, because from some of the pictures its hard to understand how all of it was done by hand?

Contextualize: Thinking of the land itself as art but also as a thing to sculpt, I think really shows a part of the Aztec culture's want to conquest land. They utilized as much of the land using terraces , water ways, and earthworks to create a culture that majorly influenced by the landscapes around it. everything the land has to offer. On a smaller scale a place that did this was Renaissance park. The designers for that sight decided to not just get rid of the contaminated soil but corralled it into these large mounds that would become a source of recreation, art, and ecological importance.

Relate: This question of what is art and what is Landscape goes back to HTPII . The criteria we tried to set up on what is art and the common critiques in class of individuals view the boundaries of landscape and art differently. Can all earthworks be considered art or do they have to have a meaning behind them? One of the criteria's our class decided embodied art was its ability to mean something. But the way Tetzcotzingo thinks of the" land itself is art "proves the point that the topic for one depends on the viewer ,but also shows that landscapes can be art without having to be an art piece. The topic could even dive in further into does a landscape have to have meaning ? For example in Jan Gilletes Can Gardens Mean? she challenges the idea of objects in the garden as being a symbol of mountains. She explains though that we often mistake symbols for meaning . So can we really call these mountain artwork or should we only classify it as a landscape.

Gillette, Jane. “Can Gardens Mean?” Landscape Journal, 1 Jan. 2005, lj.uwpress.org/content/24/1/85.abstract.

I understand that these gardens became more public. They were also able to have more because of the size, but was it open to the entire public? Or was the style of gardening more accessible to the public because most classes could embody it? Were they community gardens?

“In other words, that what is there can be of benefit always depends on its achievement of functionality through what is not there.” I think this comment is still important in contemporary design. The idea that there can be a balance between design and blank space. When done well what is in the area creates the nonbeing, that can frame what is there into a balanced scene. In landscape architecture I feel like we talk a lot about the spatial qualities of spaces like the opening and closing. Each space has a different balance of the nonbeing and the and what creates it. One creates the other, but the nonbeing is what frames what is around it. Depending on how you want that space to feel depends on how much nothingness is created.

In an article by carol McDowell she says "Walls around a Chinese garden were designed to block out the surrounding patterns of human activity so that on the inside at least man would turn back to nature. If you stepped through a circular doorway to enter the garden it was symbolic of the universe and, you were intellectually at least, entering one of the gates of heaven via the pathway that led you there." Relating back to the passage the walls are just there to provide a function. The open space between is part of the experience of non being . This concept can be seen today in landscapes through our description of spatial quality. The landscape can be born from the things that create the rooms , but the negative space is where the experience happens. The structures create the substance within.

McDowall, Carolyn, and Carolyn McDowallCarolyn McDowall FRSA has gained considerable experience and business acumen in her professional career. An independent cultural and social historian. “A Chinese Garden – The Rhythm of Nature Refreshing the Heart.” The Culture Concept Circle, 2 Sept. 2012, www.thecultureconcept.com/a-chinese-garden-the-rhythm-of-nature-refreshing-the-heart.

I think this is why we have been so drawn to the idea of the garden of Eden as a muse for garden design. the idea that something can provide so much without the touch of humans but their can also be a good relationship between the environment and humans . The garden of Eden portrays something as almost perfect in every way. So much so that it is also something that can't really ever exist in perfect harmony , I think that is why we are interested in it is because it is something we can't quite achieve.

Relate

Western culture is constantly in the battle of trying to control natural ecosystems to create the perfect space that provides what we want. I think sometimes our attempt to create the perfect landscape often is controlled by our desires rather than what is needed or can be provided by the site. I think mainstream Western culture is trying to move the image of the perfect landscape to the idea of restoring what was already there not trying to fit it into a gated community.

Contextualize

Western ideas on the perfect landscape have been highly impacted by the Garden of Eden. It was a place that was described as perfect and peaceful. The land provided for Adam and Eve with everything thing they needed. The fall from the garden of Eden created the relationship between man and nature and the content work of trying to control it. The image 1.26 from The Course of Landscape Architecture by Girot shows the image of a walled off garden that is a sanctuary. He refers to it as the garden of Eden because it was a paradise providing shade, fruit, and privacy.

Relate

So why are humans drawn to trees as symbols? Is it their growth patterns that interest us or their ability to provide resources for us like shade , food, and building products? Or is the complexity and grandness ?

This passage brings up how humans use trees ,forests, and landscapes in more than just a physical place or resource . The image of trees have been symbolized throughout cultures. In The Course of Landscape Architecture it is believed the some of the forest clearings and pathways were supposed to be reflective of the tree of life. The symbols of a tree is even very important in the Auburn culture. Some design themes are relevant of the auburn live oaks in design around campus for example the rec, t-shirts, and traditions.