design inspiration Archives - Page 3 of 3

When it comes to identifying those who’ve shaped his life and work, acclaimed landscape architect Raymond Jungles doesn’t hesitate in naming Brazilian designer Roberto Burle Marx as a singularly profound influence. Famous for bold arrangements of plant materials and architectural forms, Burle Marx’s gardens are among the world’s most celebrated and studied – a legacy Jungles describes here as a close friend and student of the master.

A Master at Work

I first became an admirer of Roberto Burle Marx while I was a student in landscape architecture at the University of Florida: His remarkable work, which combined a special brand of modernism with the lush potential of Brazilian settings, was incredibly powerful and the major formative influence on my own professional career. I'd learned how to draw in school and had acquired the technical skills it took to be a landscape architect, but it was seeing how Burle Marx approached his landscapes and paintings - not to mention the way he lived his life - that gave me the spark I needed to define my own approach. My personal relationship with him began soon after I graduated in 1981. I'd read an article in the Miami Herald about Burle Marx turning 70 and began writing to him in hopes he'd invite me to visit his home in Brazil. A couple of months later, I received a call from my friend Lester Pancoast, a well-known Miami architect. Burle Marx was in town and was staying as his houseguest, Pancoast explained, suggesting that since Burle Marx had a free evening I might want to take him to dinner. My future wife and I spent a nice evening with Burle Marx, who was reserved but very polite and seemed all the while to be sizing us up. After dinner, we went to Pancoast's home, where Burle Marx showed us

Southern Accents

Specializing in naturalistic watershapes obviously requires an appreciation of nature, says Atlanta-based pond/stream specialist Robert Vaughn, but doing a good job of emulating what happens in and around natural bodies of water also calls for a refined set of design and installation skills – especially when the goal is to create watershapes that appear right at home amid rolling topographies and densely wooded landscapes. The Atlanta area is a great place to be a watershaper these days. The natural landscape is beautiful with its undulating terrain and dense tree canopy, and there are plenty of affluent, upscale neighborhoods in which skills may be applied in support of clients who have the wherewithal to demand something special. That combination of attributes adds up to great opportunities for companies like mine – Earthwerx of Carterville, Ga. – that focus on crafting nature-inspired paradises in substantial backyards. Indeed, this is a market in which prospective clients are passionate about enjoying their homes and their surroundings instead of engaging in the hassles and perceived risks of travel. In addition, where property values and home equities in other markets have taken a hit in the past year, the

Pretty as a Picture

Swimming pools and other watershapes make great subjects for photographers, which makes it logical that every year or two I've be able to amass a new collection of these books to review. In general, publications such as these are all about pretty projects and are aimed mainly at consumers, but I've always found them useful as sources for design ideas and, in general, as a means of seeing what other people are doing. For the most part, however, these publications are not particularly "informative": Once you get past the pictures, there's really not much else there to build knowledge or advance the craft. Such is the case with all four of the publications I'll cover here in quick, round-up fashion. All are beautifully illustrated, and some display an interesting range when it comes to

For more than 4,000 years, stone has been used to create structures of enduring beauty and grandeur. Some, including the Parthenon in Athens and Egypt’s pyramids, are now icons the world over. Others, such as the great stone structures of Mesoamerica, are still relatively unfamiliar. Here, landscape designer Bobbie Schwartz seeks to pull back that veil, guiding us on an eye-opening visit to the Maya ruins of Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula.

New World Impressions

The people who once inhabited modern-day Mexico's Yucatan peninsula were remarkably sophisticated. Their civilization was based on a deep-rooted knowledge of astronomy, mathematics, hydraulics and engineering. They quarried stone and moved it hundreds of miles on rollers, using this raw material and incorporating it into highly refined buildings, temples, roads and monumental works of art that rival those of the better-known cultures of ancient Europe, Africa and Asia. In 2001, I traveled extensively in the Yucatan to experience the region's culture and view masterworks from many centuries past. What I found was a sense of form, line and pattern in the ruins of

Modern Voices

If you feel the same need I do to explore the vast and inspiring reaches of 20th-century structural forms, The Oral History of Modern Architecture by John Peter is a wonderful and enduring resource. Published in 1994 by Harry N. Abrams (New York), this text features more than 100 interviews with modern architects, including in-depth discussions conducted by the author with a group he defines as the "Top Ten" masters of modern architecture. The interviews were conducted in the stretch from 1953 to 1989, and several audio excerpts are provided on a CD that comes as a companion to the printed transcripts. And it's quite a roster of luminaries, including

The features, traditions and character of Chinese garden design are generally unfamiliar to most Westerners – and that’s a shame, says watergarden designer Rick Anderson, because they are an art form all their own. He recently traveled to China to learn more about these unusual spaces and to explore the natural beauty of the Yangtze River’s valley and here shares his observations and inspirations.

Finding China

Many years have passed since I first saw pictures of China, but my desire to travel to the Giant of the Orient has never waned. In recent years, in fact, that interest grew ever stronger as I watched all the new information emerging from China as it has slowly opened itself to the Western world. I’ve been particularly fascinated by documentaries on the Yangtze River and The Great Dam that China is building to manage its floodwaters. This past spring, I visited China to see its amazing gardens with my own eyes and travel down the Yangtze through the fabled Three Gorges and the Lesser Three Gorges. I went seeking inspiration and came back with more than my quota of thoughts on the mysteriousness and tantalizing vagueness with which