Boston Flora

Tag: Sasaki

  • Thursday, September 12, 2:00 pm Eastern – Taliesin West, the Desert Laboratory, Online

    In 2023, the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation commissioned the integrated design practice at Sasaki to complete a new master plan of Taliesin West, the former home and studio of architect Frank Lloyd Wright in Scottsdale, AZ. In this conversation between Sasaki landscape architects and senior staff from the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, the history of the site will be discussed along with the impetus and aims of the project and broader lessons for everyone who cares about landscapes.

    Taliesin West embodies Wright’s principles of organic architecture blending harmoniously with the surrounding landscape. The Sonoran Desert surrounding Taliesin West is an integral component of its design and plays a crucial role in the site’s development and sustainability; it is also one of the most biologically diverse deserts in the world, home to many distinct species of flora and fauna adapted to survive in its harsh and arid conditions. The buildings and landscapes face new challenges from climate change, invasive species, and development. The new master plan by Sasaki will respect the site’s heritage while considering contemporary developments in ecology and sustainability, allowing the site to remain a resilient and alluring destination for visitors seeking horticulture and culture alike.

    Speakers include Susannah C. Drake, FASLA FAIA, a Principal at Sasaki and founder of DLANDstudio. She lectures globally about resilient urban design and has taught at leading design schools including Harvard, Cooper Union, and Illinois Institute of Technology. She received the 2020 Cooper Hewitt National Design Award for Climate Action and her work is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art. Stuart Graff began studying Frank Lloyd Wright’s work more than fifty years ago, sustaining a lifelong passion for the work of America’s greatest architect. Since 2016, as the President and CEO of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, he has stewarded one of the world’s great cultural legacies to ensure its relevance for our time and for the future: teaching us how to build and live better, as one with the world around us. Jennifer Gray, PhD is the Director of the Taliesin Institute at the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. She is an architectural historian and curator with a focus on modern architecture, landscape, and social politics. She serves on the Board of Directors for the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy. Andrew Sell is a Senior Associate Ecologist and Landscape Architect at Sasaki specializing in landscape restoration and ecological design for a changing climate. Before joining Sasaki in 2017, Andy practiced environmental education and ecological restoration at Glacier National Park, Matthaei Botanical Gardens & Nichols Arboretum.

    The Garden Conservancy will sponsor a webinar on September 12 at 2 pm Eastern $5 for members of the Garden Conservancy
    $15 for General Admission A recording of this webinar will be sent to all registrants a few days after the event. We encourage you to register, even if you cannot attend the live webinar.

  • Wednesday, October 20, 10:00 am – An Update on the Boston City Hall Project,Online

    The Garden Club of the Back Bay’s October meeting will take place October 20 at 10:00 am online on Zoom. Kate Tooke, Associate Principal, ASLA, PLA, will discuss the Boston City Hall Plaza redesign and the next stages in the process. The City of Boston has a short video we recommend to bring you up to speed on the project before the meeting: https://www.boston.gov/departments/public-facilities/city-hall-plaza-renovation

    Kate is a landscape architect at Sasaki. Her project leadership, strategic thinking, design eye, and technical skills have been instrumental in the success of diverse projects ranging from master planning to site-scale work. As a naturally interdisciplinary thinker, she excels at collaborating across disciplines to craft elegant, contextual solutions to complex design challenges.

    Prior to discovering landscape architecture, Kate was a high school math and physics teacher in the Boston Public School system. Her passion for inspiring and empowering urban youth infuses her work as a landscape architect. She values engaging stakeholders in the design of their own urban public spaces through lively workshops, and is particularly interested civic open spaces that support the play and learning of city children. Kate pursues independent research on children’s outdoor environments, including schoolyards, playscapes, and outdoor classrooms.

    Kate holds a master’s degree in landscape architecture from the University of Massachusetts, a master’s degree in education from Lesley University, and a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Dartmouth College. She earned the 2011 National Olmsted Scholar award, the highest honor of the Landscape Architecture Foundation (LAF), for her work on urban schoolyards, and has since served on LAF’s board of directors. Kate remains active in the academic world through teaching appointments at the Rhode Island School of Design and University of Massachusetts Amherst as well as through volunteer work with local public schools.

    Please note: As COVID and its variants create new challenges, we have decided to hold this presentation virtually on ZOOM. If you are a Garden Club member, you will receive a notice. If you are not a member and are interested in attending, click HERE and we will put you on the notification list.

  • Thursday, April 12 – Sunday, April 15 – Leading with Landscape IV: North Carolina’s Research Triangle

    In an effort to broaden awareness of the transformation taking place in the public realm across the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill Research Triangle, The Cultural Landscape Foundation (TCLF) will curate a conference and related events on April 12-15, 2018, that will draw an audience that is local, national, and international in scope. In developing these events, TCLF, in partnership with the City of Raleigh, North Carolina State University, North Carolina Museum of Art, and Sasaki, is working to excite and inspire constituents, helping them to understand that the ambitions of their region are worthy of critical analysis, evaluation, and broadcasting.

    Over the past fifteen years TCLF has organized numerous conferences – all of them sold-out events – that examine urban planning and landscape architecture. Most recently, the foundation’s Leading with Landscape conferences in San Antonio (2017), Houston (2016), and Toronto (2015) have taken multi-disciplinary approaches to understanding the balance that exists between thr stewardship of natural and cultural resources and the evolving identities of urban areas. Conference attendees included landscape architects and allied practitioners, urban planners and related municipal officials, stewardship advocates, educators, elected officials, and other interested parties. All three conferences also secured the participation of their city’s mayors, along with key leaders from the public, non-profit, and academic sectors.

    Schedule of Events:

    Thursday Evening, April 12: Opening Reception, North Carolina Museum of Art
    Friday, April 13: Leading with Landscape Conference, James B. Hunt, Jr., Library, North Carolina State University
    Saturday and Sunday April 14-15: What’s Out There Weekend, Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill

    Visit https://tclf.org/leading-landscape-iv-north-carolinas-research-triangle for further information regarding the lineup of speakers, the schedule of events, registration information, and more.