ARTICLES Archives - Page 266 of 312

Aesthetic thrills and technical perfection: Those are the twin goals watershaper Mario Abaldo always pursues in developing his high-end custom environments – and the project covered here is a case in point with a twist: In this instance, he came in on a complex project that had gone miserably off course in a remote location in western Virginia and introduced a systematic, collaborative approach that set things back up for a grand conclusion.

A Rustic Retreat

The Shenandoah Valley of western Virginia is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. The site to which we were summoned in January 2004 - a 220-acre estate set amidst its rolling hills - confirmed that opinion in every possible way by offering incredible views of nearby valleys, forests, farmland and mountains. We'd been called to take over a grand-scale swimming-pool project, one as outsized as the property with respect to scope and complexity - and one that required constant, detailed interaction with

Bright Ideas

Janet Lennox Moyer's The Landscape Lighting Book (John Wiley & Sons, 1992) is quite simply one of the finest textbooks I've ever read. Indeed, when it comes to resources on the often-elusive topic of landscape lighting, it's hard to imagine a more comprehensive resource. Moyer is a lighting designer and instructor who has made a career of lighting the night with a flair that has earned her a tremendous reputation in the United Sates and abroad. (Her first contribution to WaterShapes, coincidentally, appears in this issue - click here.) In reading her 282-page, richly illustrated book, it's easy to see why she's become so successful: There is so much detail about design and such a wealth of specific

Rules of Engagement

On several occasions during the past few years, I've had the privilege of working with talented professionals who have made it possible for me to operate comfortably far from my home base on what have often been extremely ambitious projects. In fact, I've found some of my most exciting and rewarding recent jobs have been the result of these collaborations with other watershapers. Although working with them is different from

Friendly Barriers

We're all aware of local codes and other requirements regarding the fences we put surrounding watershapes: Many of the solutions we are forced to adopt can be quite unsightly and often detract significantly from the visual beauty we're trying to create overall with our watershapes and planting plans. Unfortunately, many designers and contractors seem to see all fences as being grossly equivalent, meaning that they're taking the rules that apply around watershapes and translating them into a non-watershape settings, probably because it's the path of least resistance at a time when

Standing Proud

No doubt about it: More and more quality projects are being designed and built by the various segments of the watershaping trades these days. That pleases me for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that it tends to reinforce my observation and belief that great work is done mostly by people who take genuine pride in what they do. Indeed, I see such a consistent correlation between pride and quality that I've come to see the former characteristic as a prerequisite for performance at the highest level. That may seem an obvious point, but when you scratch the surface of the subject as it relates to the watershaping industry, it takes on

Lessons on the Home Front

A number of you have asked me, with varying degrees of urgency but no outright threats of bodily harm, to lighten up on what you see as

San Diego-based landscape designer, watershaper and artist Melanie Jauregui has spent a career taking inspiration and clues from her clients, specific settings and her own explorations of the realm of art and design. As a result, she says, each of her projects is different from the others-and a reflection of a collaborative approach that enables her to bring just about any style to bear in meeting the distinctive needs of any project.

Style Council

I'm steadily reminded of one key point: No matter how talented any one of us might be, the work ultimately is not about us. For intensely creative people equipped with the necessary measures of self-confidence and ego, that point can be tough to accept and absorb, but it's true: For all our skills, we nonetheless work with our clients' visions, and the reality is that creating sympathetic designs for them takes time, patience and lots of effort. As a result, I'm passionate about uncovering what my clients are truly after in their garden and watershape designs. It's an investment of time and energy at the onset of the relationship that always

Sound Options

An amenity once found almost exclusively on major commercial properties, sophisticated outdoor sound systems are becoming increasingly popular in today's residential landscapes and gardens. In fact, says audio specialist Scott Sylvester, modern speaker systems are adding all-new dimensions to exterior spaces, giving watershapers and others the opportunity to provide their clients and guests with a complete outdoor sensory experience.

Water that dances in time to music has come to shape the pinnacle of architectural fountain design in recent years, and for good reason: The results can be utterly spectacular. In this article, fountain designers Ken Martin and Gerald Tester take a look inside this technology while profiling a musical fountain they recently installed in White Plains, N.Y., where tuneful sprays have quickly turned a small urban park into an invigorating cultural hub.

When Music Meets Water

At a time when scores of American cities are still looking for ways to revive the faded glory of their urban cores, possible approaches are as visionary (and numerous) as can be. The process has resulted in new parks, major redevelopment, architectural restorations and a long list of other solutions - including the unique watershape commissioned by the city of White Plains, N.Y. A town with 54,000 full-time residents whose population swells to more than 200,000 during the day when office workers, shoppers and visitors come calling, White Plains made the decision to invest $4.5 million of public and private grant money in resurrecting a small downtown park. Appropriately named Renaissance Plaza, the park surrounds a state-of-the-art musical fountain unveiled in October 2003 for the specific purpose of luring people back to the downtown area - and it has worked. In fact, the plaza has become such a hub of activity that nearly 1,700 units of new residential housing are now under construction in its downtown neighborhood. URBAN OBJECTIVE First settled by British colonists who bought it from the Mohican tribe in 1683, this historically rich city located 25 miles north of Manhattan has truly been reborn, and it's with no small measure of

The swimming pools of the 1932 Olympics stand adjacent to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum as enduring reminders of the city’s history as one of the world’s sports capitals. After decades of use as a competitive venue and community recreation center, however, the facility had fallen into a state of disrepair – a condition from which a consortium of civic groups rescued it with the help of the designers and engineers at Rowley International.

Reclaiming Olympic Gold

It may have been in the heart of the depression, but 1932 was a good year for American swimmers: The Olympic Games in Los Angeles saw Clarence "Buster" Crabbe win gold in the 400-meter freestyle in the then-world-record time of 4:48.2 and Helene Madison win gold medals in both the 100- and 400-meter freestyle events. U.S. swimmers claimed nine medals in all, in many cases besting swimmers from the powerful and heavily favored Japanese team. The competition was held in an eight lane, 50-meter pool positioned quite literally in the shadow of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Just as the names and records of those swimmers have faded across 70-plus years, so too had the swimming pool and its companion recreation pool. Although they had remained in near-continuous use for generations, the old vessels were supplanted when a modern swimming pool complex opened on the nearby campus of the University of Southern California in anticipation of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympiad. Early in 2003, we at Rowley International of Palos Verdes Estates, Calif., were asked to renovate the old facility's two swimming pools. The City of Los Angeles, along with support from the Amateur Athletic Federation (AAF), set a goal that didn't involve