ARTICLES Archives - Page 185 of 312

Villa d’Este: Fountain Perfection

If you're looking for a destination that includes, all in one place, several of the most enduring and influential watershapes of all time, you couldn't go wrong in visiting Villa d'Este — without question one of the

The Creative Side of Concrete

Concrete is an utterly amazing material, but it's so widely used — so pervasive in our world — that it's easy for the average person to take it for granted and barely give it a second thought. As watershapers, of course, we don't have the luxury of

The View from the Editor’s Desk

Eric Herman has served as the editor of WaterShapes magazine since its inception in 1999. During a career spanning more than 25 years, he has written and edited articles across a broad range of industries, technical subjects and business interests. According to

From Rice Cooker to Waterfeature

The warmth and solid heft of aged, cast brass are the hallmarks of the antique rice cooker — a treasure acquired in India several years ago — that now makes a statement to visitors approaching a modern Colorado home's front door. Forged more than 150 years ago using the same techniques employed in making

Low Bidders: A Cancer on Commerce

Although many people steadfastly defend their efforts at becoming a project's low bidder by saying, "There's just no other way to bring in the business," the sad fact is that this practice is a cancer — one that degrades the product, leaves the clients unhappy and diminishes

Structured Thinking

It might sound a bit strange to put it this way, but when it comes to design work, one of the most useful things you can do is to think about how you think about design. If you're like me and have been working as a watershape designer for more years than you care to count, much of what you do is now

A Precious Resource

It's human nature: We often neglect the quality and profound importance of that which fulfills our most basic needs. At a minimum, we expect breathable (if not clean) air, abundant food, warm beds, companionship, clothing and, especially, clean water. We take these and other "commodities" for granted because they come in abundant supply — so when issues arise, they tend to

Becoming Wise

"A smart man learns from his own mistakes, a wise man learns from the mistakes of others." If you follow that Latin proverb, then you might conclude that the watershaping industry is populated by a fair number of smart people and a few wise ones. There are others out there, however, who

A Story in Stone

Through the years, my experience in designing and building naturalistic and architectural watershapes has led me into several situations in which my clients have wanted to use a special heirloom or artifact of some kind as

A Fountain of Watershaping Insights

An Interview by Lenny Giteck Jon Mitovich is president and general manager of Roman Fountains, a designer and manufacturer of fountain-system packages and components based in Albuquerque, N.M. Mitovich has conducted classes and seminars on the fountain business and fountain design to help watershapers understand the origin, history and application of water in architectural environments. He also has