Public Landscapes: (a brief)
History of Landscape Design
Development
NGC LANDSCAPE DESIGN COURSE I
ERIN ALVAREZ
(brief) History of Public
Landscapes

Think about it:
What is a public landscape?
When did this all start?
(brief) History of Public
Landscapes

3500-3000 BCE: Egyptian Gardens
Garden art
 Fish ponds, walled gardens, fruit trees

(brief) History of Public
Landscapes

Mesopotamia, China, Japan
Documented use of medicinal plants
 First plant classification
 Gardens at temples, palaces, schools
 Models of natural areas, extensive
embellishments
 How public were they?

(brief) History of Public
Landscapes

500-100 BCE

Hanging Gardens of
Babylon
 Built
by Nebuchadnezzar
 Pleasure gardens
 “Green mountain”

China
 Palace
gardens
 Largest occupied over 1000
km 2, 300+ palaces
 “Chinese Homes and
Gardens”: gardens meant to
embrace and charm, not awe
(brief) History of Public
Landscapes

500-100 BCE: Rome, Greece
Medicinal, meditative,
pleasure, functional
 Theophrastus: “Father of
Botany”, Aristotle, Alexander
the Great
 Public societies = public
spaces
 Urban design became critical:

 Open
spaces
 Structures
 Streets
 Bridges
(brief) History of Public
Landscapes

8th Century
Monastic gardens
 Medicinal, meditative, service
 Cloisters

(brief) History of Public
Landscapes

16th Century: Physic Gardens
Began in Italy
 Academic study of medicinal plants

 University-centered:
Pisa, Padua, Oxford
 Spread throughout Europe, United Kingdom
(brief) History of Public
Landscapes

16th-19th Century Shift
International trade to colonies
 Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew,
Real Jardin Botanico de Madrid

 Housed
new species, commercial
crops
 Encourage botanical exploration
 Established new gardens in tropics
Little or no scientific basis to
work
 Extensive plant exploration,
importation back “home”

(brief) History of Public
Landscapes

17th-19th Centuries: Rise of the Pleasure
Garden
Estate and palace gardens
 Primarily European

(brief) History of Public
Landscapes

19th-20th Century
Municipal and civic gardens proliferated
 1859: Missouri Botanic Garden

 First
true public botanical garden in US
 Correct labeling of collections, seed exchange
(brief) History of Public
Landscapes

1840-1940: Birth of Landscape
Architecture/Design

Andrew Jackson Downing: “father of American
design”
 “Home
sweet home” culture
 Public park and space design
Monumental landscapes
 Good urban design areas:

 Planning
coordination
 Botanical Gardens
 Open spaces
(brief) History of Public
Landscapes

20th-21st Century: Botanic Garden
Revival

Emergence of conservation movement
 1970s
ex situ conservation was promoted
Preservation of collections
 Propagation, restoration
 Conservation, Education

Public/Urban Design Today

What do they look like?


Community gardens, bike trails, streets, botanical
gardens, public parks, greenways, town squares,
exit ramps, municipal building landscapes…etc.
Challenges? Opportunities?
Zoning, codes, architectural styles, infrastructure
 Coordinating multiple planning agencies
 People!

Public Landscape Designs
Today

Providing urban resources in an urban
environment
Maintenance, agency coordination, allowing open
spaces
 Funding?


Rationale = justification
Shade and climate
 Recreation
 Enhance architecture
 Beauty!

What’s next?

Where will the next century take our public
spaces?
Thank you!
Questions?
[email protected]