ARTICLES Archives - Page 148 of 317

Untangling the Backyard Battles

In Part 1 of this article, we explored the nature and variety of the possible disagreements that can arise when couples really get down to the business of saying what they want in a backyard watershape or landscape project. (To see that item, click here.) These conflicts can be

#1: Rain Fall

I’ve been discussing watershapes with clients for about 25 years now, and it’s been a long time since I was surprised by any of the questions they’ve asked me along the way. I’ve noticed, of course, that in many cases I’ve been asked

Forms and Figures

As watershape design expands beyond the mostly recreational traditions of the recent past, more of us are being asked these days to design water elements that work more decoratively and serve to frame, reflect and otherwise accentuate or

Ripples #56

Compiled and Written by Lenny Giteck Italian Politician Swims to Sicily to Win Over Voters

Test Your Knowledge #45

What City Held the U.S. Swimming Trials for the Last Two Olympics?

Liquid Glass

As a designer and artist, I believe that water and glass walk hand in hand: Both are transparent and translucent. They distort and reflect surrounding colors and forms. And depending upon whom you ask, water and glass are both liquids. The visual and physical resonance between these two fascinating materials is important to me: I know that their interplay adds

Something in the Air?

The past couple weeks have seen an unusual number of good-news items cross my desk. Let’s start with the Association of Pool & Spa Professionals’ announcement of the formation of World of Recreational Water, a new foundation that will promote the sustainable use of recreational water worldwide. Back when Eric Herman and I spent many long hours

Working with Rainwater

Back in January 2009, WaterShapes ran a big article on the team effort involved in installing the first-generation rainwater-harvesting system developed by the folks at Aquascape (St. Charles, Ill.). Ed Beaulieu’s article (linked below) went into great detail on how everything came together, so I won’t duplicate that information here. But I feel obliged to stress the point that a

Backyard Battles of the Sexes

When couples get together to plan their backyards, sparks frequently fly. Once they really dig into the process and start defining their individual desires, they find all too often that their wish lists are actually worlds apart. As an outdoor designer, I’ve worked with couples who’ve run into these sorts of vision-related snags at some point in the process, and it all boils down to

Mile-High Gallop

It’s not every day you get the chance to work on a project that’s going to be seen around the world by millions of people for decades to come. That was exactly the opportunity that came our way in October 1999, when we were asked by the Denver Broncos to construct an elaborate waterfeature at Invesco Field at Mile High, a brand-new stadium that