Landscape Architecture : History

		History of Landscape Architecture		A Timeline of Landscape Architecture

In the course of its relatively young history, this nation has changed the face of a vast continent. Far too much development has created a formless and grotesque travesty that has changed forever the splendors of much of the pre-settlement landscape. Yet an ethic for shaping our land has also emerged, and we can claim a remarkable array of outdoor spaces that enrich the human spirit and add immeasurably to our quality of life. This ethic has become an integral part of our country's landscape architectural heritage.
William H. Tishler, FASLA

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Landscape Architecture in the U.S.-The Beginnings

The beginning of the 20th century brought exciting new challenges and opportunities to what was still a fledgling profession. Two major achievements launched the profession into this era. In 1899 the American Society of Landscape Architects was founded. The following year formal instruction began at Harvard, the nation's most prestigious university.

Inspired by new democratic ideals and growing social concerns, early landscape designers had combined agricultural methods, civil engineering techniques and artistic principles to shape the land. Their work reflected a quest for beauty and function combined with responsible land stewardship. Frederick Law Olmsted had become the acknowledged father of American landscape architecture and it was his vision that established the lofty ideals that will forever guide the profession's underlying philosophy.

Olmsted's friend H. W. S. Cleveland was one of the earliest advocates for conserving large interconnected systems of open space and landscape amenities from "the vandalism which is the inevitable companion of civilization." These two landscape architects and numerous others created a more established profession with new forms of designed landscapes emerging on the American scene.

Among these new forms was the urban park and recreational spaces that evolved from gardens, cemeteries and parks to amusement parks, camps, clubs, golf courses, resorts, spas and zoos. Planning larger housing environments also emerged under the guise of landscape architecture.

It has been said that the profession has reached the point where it now has the ability to invent its own future.
William H. Tishler, FASLA

20th Century Landscape Architecture-The First Century

In the early 1900s, the depression brought difficult times for many private offices, but New Deal programs opened new horizons for public practitioners, who emerged to meet this challenge from the increasing number of landscape architectural programs. Their leadership and skill were demonstrated clearly in the development of a vast system of national and state parks and forests that remain unparalleled anywhere in the world.

The early 20th century also saw the rise of women in the profession. Landscape architect Beatrix Farrand, best known for designing the Dumbarton Oaks gardens in Washington, D.C., was a founder of the American Society of Landscape Architects. Ellen Biddle Shipman was a champion of women landscape architects and was known for her grand estate designs and lavish gardens. Florence Yoch designed early film sets, including the landscape around Tara for Gone With the Wind. Today, women constitute more than a quarter of the profession.

During this time, the parkway emerged as an accepted landscape feature. Planning entire communities became an important practice area and the concept of historic preservation grew beyond the confines of architecture to include the landscape itself, becoming an important area of practice for landscape architects. Recent specialties include the restoration of disturbed sites to their earlier natural character, and reclaiming quarries, strip-mined areas, and landfills for productive purposes. One of the most noteworthy advancements of landscape architecture in recent times has occurred in large-scale landscape planning.

Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr., is credited with the language in the National Park Service Act creating the agency: "to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wildlife therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations." The concept of master planning in the agency arose from the influence of landscape architects, and the National Park Service today is one of the most significant embodiments of landscape architectural principles in the federal establishment.

Another significant contribution to managing wild and rural landscapes has been the development of techniques for assessing and protecting scenic quality. A cherished national resource, our landscape scenery can now be better protected with a variety of programs that emerged from methods pioneered mainly by U.S. Forest Service landscape architects.

Thousands now follow the calling of the profession. More than 70 programs in landscape architecture exist at 53 American colleges and universities, forming an education system in this field unparalleled anywhere in the world. Innovative research is beginning to provide important new knowledge for the practitioner. Today the field of landscape architecture has matured and is expanding into new and exciting horizons.

Clearly not all change is bad. In fact, there may be some real opportunities that occur as a result of change. How can we as landscape architects remove some of the uncertainty associated with the changing world around us-and how can we position our profession to be beneficiaries of that change?
Patrick A. Miller, FASLA

Landscape Architecture in the 21st Century-The Second Century

The landscape architecture profession must continue to provide innovative planning and excellent design to create a world that is designed with nature, fosters community, enhances sense of place and is safer, healthier, and more beautiful.

However, the profession must confront unprecedented challenges. Pressure to reduce university costs has resulted in threats to landscape architectural programs, which need increasing numbers of students to justify their existence. The escalating cost of landscape architecture education is a potential limiting factor for a new generation of students entering the profession, and many students who might be attracted to the profession are unaware of it. Information, research and continuing education within the profession are rapidly growing needs that are not currently being met.

There is inadequate public appreciation for the value of design and planning in enhancing the quality of life in communities. As a result, there is a corresponding lack of funds for project planning, resulting in lost opportunities. The changing role of government and its funding priorities may decrease the dollars available for public projects. The pressure to develop land as populations grow and the populace aspires to ever increasing standards of living will compete with the accelerating movement to protect natural areas, creating a growing need for landscape architectural services.

The skills of landscape architects are actively sought overseas, due to the relative strength of the profession in this country. This demand is further stretching the small number of landscape architects in the United States, who often find it difficult to draw on local landscape architects in other countries because the profession doesn't yet have a global base.

As the pressure for the services of the limited number of landscape architects increases, the profession cannot keep pace with the demand being made on its members. This results in further leakage of landscape architectural services to allied professionals who lack the experience and education necessary for these projects, and projects that contribute less to the community and the client than the possibilities indicate.