ARTICLES Archives - Page 271 of 314

Dedicated in 2001, the D-Day Memorial in Bedford, Va., stands as a solemn commemoration of the sacrifices made by the U.S. and allied troops who landed on the beaches of Normandy in June 1944. At the center of the memorial stands a striking watershape – designed and installed by fountain specialist Jon Mitovich and the staff at Roman Fountains – that captures the spirit of the battlefield and serves as a haunting place of remembrance.

The Shape of Sacrifice

June 6, 1944, was a cold, dark, cloudy day along the northern coast of France. When the Higgins boats carrying allied troops slapped their gangways into the cold sea 60 years ago this month and released their human cargo onto the beach, withering machine gun fire greeted the soldiers from German bunkers high above the beach. Before the day was over, 6,603 Americans had lost their lives in what became known as D-Day - the start of the allied invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe. When planning started for a National D-Day Memorial to be built in Bedford, Va., the project's

Into the Pond

Experts in watergardening and pond enthusiasts of all stripes are quite quick to claim that their form of watershaping is the fastest-growing segment of the industry and trumpet a history that stretches, they say, to the Islamic world, Japan and Europe. I can't say whether they're right or wrong with their assertions, but it's my sense as someone who's been designing with water for many years that the current trend toward naturalistic ponds and streams is quite strong (and probably getting stronger) and that it's important for all of us professionals to approach the art and science of "living" watershapes in a deliberate and thoughtful way. To that end, I've examined many publications dedicated to watergardening - and I'd be lying if I said that I've been

Now You See It

Some people seem to believe that designing is all about reinventing the wheel every time they go to work on a new project or need to create a new detail of some kind. Truth is, however, that most great design ideas and details are derivative of things that have been done before. This is why I'm such a strong advocate for education - especially the sort that involves venturing out into the world and seeing things with your own eyes. You can see pictures of things in books and watch slide shows in classrooms, and that's extremely valuable for the way it opens your eyes to

Branching Out

I never really thought much about the plants and trees surrounding me until I started edging my way toward the landscape-design business. Growing up, I'd look out my bedroom window and into our backyard and see plants and trees, but I didn't know that they were called Junipers or Giant Birds of Paradise or Ficus trees. They all looked pretty much the same to me - a generic veil of greenery. My path of discovery began when I bought my first house on Long Island. All of a sudden, there were rules about

Striking Simplicity

We've all heard the phrase "less is more" so often that it's become a cliché, but there are still situations where there is powerful truth in those words. There is no question, for example, that watershapers can create tremendous beauty by using simple shapes and quality materials to accentuate and magnify a setting. This is particularly so when the watershaper exploits the alluring, reflective qualities of water itself to create a strong focal point while effectively blending the vessel into its setting. A case in point is the

Roaring Up the High Road

When I was a kid, I was obsessed with hot rods. I suspect this resulted from my dad's subscriptions to magazines such as Road & Track and Street Rod: I was mesmerized by

Set on a mountaintop in Solano County, Calif., and designed by architect Helena Arahuete of Lautner & Associates, the sculptural qualities of this magnificent home are difficult to convey in words or images – and that’s not even considering the breathtaking watershape installed by Steve Dallons. The cantilevered swimming pool juts from the second level of the structure’s southwest side in a way that doubles the meaning of ‘high-end custom work.’

A Cantilevered Dream

It's a setting of searing beauty and now features a home that is unquestionably a work of art. Designed by renowned architect Helena Arahuete of Lautner & Associates (Hollywood, Calif.), the structure sits on a privately owned, 2,000-foot-tall mountain known as Twin Sisters Peak - just part of an 1,800-acre estate in Solano County, Calif., that offers clear vistas of the Pacific Ocean, Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco Bay, the Sacramento Valley, Napa Valley and the Sierra Madre Mountains as you turn around the compass. In the great tradition of "organic architects" from Frank Lloyd Wright through to Arahuete's mentor and long-time collaborator, the late John Lautner, the home takes full advantage of its setting, crowning the mountaintop with a glass-and-concrete hexagon that at once beautifies and harmonizes with the landscape. So fascinating is this structure and so prominent is its location that, during construction and ever since, private

A Cantilevered Dream

It's a setting of searing beauty and now features a home that is unquestionably a work of art. Designed by renowned architect Helena Arahuete of Lautner & Associates (Hollywood, Calif.), the structure sits on a privately owned, 2,000-foot-tall mountain known as Twin Sisters Peak - just part of an 1,800-acre estate in Solano County, Calif., that offers clear vistas of the Pacific Ocean, Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco Bay, the Sacramento Valley, Napa Valley and the Sierra Madre Mountains as you turn around the compass. In the great tradition of "organic architects" from Frank Lloyd Wright through to Arahuete's mentor and long-time collaborator, the late John Lautner, the home takes full advantage of its setting, crowning the mountaintop with a glass-and-concrete hexagon that at once beautifies and harmonizes with the landscape. So fascinating is this structure and so prominent is its location that, during construction and ever since, private

Once the site of an abandoned sewage plant, Jambalaya Park in Gonzalez, La., stands as testimony to just how ambitious a renovation project can be – and of how tangled the path to success sometimes becomes. As watershaper and watergarden specialist Les Ewen reports, the first attempt at installing the park’s fountain and Koi pond ended in a shambles, at which point he and his staff stepped in to put the city’s plans for the park back on track.

A Recipe for Jambalaya

Truly a large-scale project full of unique technical challenges in an unusual and important civic setting, the renovation of the watershapes at Jambalaya Park in Gonzalez, La., is easily the most unusual project our firm has ever tackled. The park covers seven beautifully wooded acres in an older section of town that's mostly residential but sits directly behind City Hall and several other smaller civic buildings. It takes its name from the fact that the city is known as the world's "Jambalaya Capital" and annually hosts a week-long festival celebrating the Cajun stew that has become a star in the

Working on historic fountains is a specialty that calls for sensitivity to the original designers’ intentions as well as a capacity to integrate modern ideas, say Kerry Friedman of Hydro Dramatics and fountain consultant Mike Perkowski. As cases in point, they report here on projects for two facilities in St. Louis’ Forest Park – the restoration and augmentation of large fountains in the Grand Basin and the addition of a small pool and jets in the Jewel Box.

Back to the Fair

To residents of St. Louis, Forest Park is a civic treasure on the order of New York's Central Park - which, locals are quick to point out, is smaller than their favorite park by 500 acres. Established in 1876 at the heart of the city, Forest Park has a similarly grand and glorious history, including service as the site of the renowned 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition & World's Fair, which drew more than 20 million visitors from across the globe. Through the years, the park's 1,370 acres have become "home" to such major attractions as the world-famous Saint Louis Zoo as well as the city's art museum, science center, planetarium, history museum and The Muny, the nation's largest outdoor theatre. Forest Park is also home to the