WaterShapes

The web site for all professionals and consumers who've made or want to make water a part of their lives

Gold Sponsors

Photo courtesy Huntington Gardens, San Marino, Calif.
Photo courtesy Crystal Fountains, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Photo courtesy Hess Landscape Architects, Lansdale, Pa.
Photo courtesy Longwood Gardens, Kennett Square, Pa.
Photo courtesy Aquatic Consultants, Miami, Fla.
Photo courtesy Liquify Pools & Spas, Overland Park, Kans.
Photo courtesy Green Scene Landscaping & Swimming Pools, Chatsworth, Calif.
Photo courtesy Premier Paradise, Phoenix, Ariz.

Life in an Oasis

The Entrada Golf Course on the outskirts of St. George, Utah, stands at the heart of an unusual cluster of housing developments. For the past five years, watershaper Richard Allen has worked non-stop to integrate the entire, grand composition through its watershapes, from big lakes and watercourses to intimate streams that run along the property lines of many of the homes – all in the name of creating a much-desired oasis in an arid landscape.

Organic Emergence

Though his long career, John Cohen has had a knack for finding clients who appreciate his passionate approach to watershaping and, as was true for the project on display here, come to enjoy the unconventional ways in which ideas, themes, echoes and details evolve on site.

Froggy Paradise

When a frog pond is complete and its new occupants have been carefully introduced to the water, Eric Triplett feels pride in what he's accomplished -- and, as this video relates, leaves the homeowners with detailed instructions on how to care for their emerging ecosystem.

Lights on the Side

Cascades look great in daylight, but lighting them has always been a challenge -- and Jeff Chapman had three of them on his plate. Fortunately, he also had access to a new LED technology -- a system that made his work just as compelling at night as it is by day.

Watergardens as Art

Transporting us to another time and place, Mike Gannon discusses one of the great artistic and horticultural convergences of all time -- and brings it all up to date by defining the ways he uses that historic collaboration to inspire his designs in the here and now.

#11: Diving Platform

Aesthetics are important, which is why lots of designers avoid visual intrusions on their pool decks. But as Mike Farley shows in this video, there are some nice compromises to be found with a bit of creativity.

Custom Pools or Aquatic Art?

Terminology is important, says Paolo Benedetti, noting that certain words are so overused, they've become almost meaningless. To avoid that, he no longer uses the standard phrases to describe what he does and instead refers to himself as an 'aquatic artist.'

Mastering the Greens

Creating watershapes and landscapes that are natural in appearance is always a challenge, says Ken Alperstein of Pinnacle Design, a firm that specializes in high-end projects related to top-flight golf courses. For this project in Shady Canyon, however, the ante was upped considerably by the site’s location in an environmentally sensitive coastal canyon in southern California – a design challenge intensified by regulatory scrutiny every step of the way.

Whimsical by Nature

As renovation projects go, this one was far from ordinary. It started with a fantastic setting and great clients frustrated by eight years of searching for just the right watershaper and came to a satisfying conclusion when they teamed up with David Tisherman, who saw what they were after and was able to deliver on all counts. Let’s take a tour of a project where fun and children at play take their place alongside great beauty and true sophistication.

Professional Relations

Back in 2002, Stephanie Rose wrote about the importance of forming networks of professional contacts. Have events and realities of recent years done anything to alter the validity of her comments?

An Accelerating Spectacle

When it comes to visual drama, Fort Worth Water Gardens is about as overwhelming as a watershape can be. So contends Jim McCloskey, who sees visiting the space as an essential pilgrimage for anyone who designs with moving water.

Beyond the Edge

Visiting the infinitely vanishing possibilities. Book Notes includes reviews of a wide variety of publications hand-selected by a professional watershaper/landscape designer who sees their relevance in his life and work.

CRYSTAL FOUNTAINS VIDEO SHOWCASE

Click 'play' to watch the current showcase video

New Products at Watershapes.com

Inter-Fab Offers River Run Landscape Slides

Outdoor Living Systems & Accessories
Product information from Inter-Fab on its River Run series of slides for pools.

Grand Effects Offers Illuminated Bowl Bases

Outdoor Living Systems & Accessories
Product information from Grand Effects on its illuminated stone bases for decorative bowls

EasyPro Manufactures Bottom-Drain Kits for Ponds

Pond/Stream Systems & Equipment
Product information from EasyPro Pond Products on its bottom drain/air diffuser systems for ponds

Laticrete Introduces 257 Titanium Mortar

Construction Systems & Materials
Product information from Laticrete on its 257 Titanium mortar for use in stone, tile, pavers and bricks.

Fountain Systems & Equipment
Product information from Blue Thumb Distributing on its LiquidArt Round Ripples Pottery Fountain

Retrofit Cover from Automatic Pool Covers

Pool/Spa Systems & Equipment
Product information from Automatic Pool Covers on its systems for retrofitting pools with covers

WaterShapes World (blog)
The release of today's WaterShapes newsletter corresponds with the debut of our new, upgraded, mobile-friendly web site. It's a big step forward, says Jim McCloskey -- and a giant leap toward meeting the changing needs of watershapers worldwide.