November 20, 2020 - GGN will be working with the Sydney Modern Project architect, SANAA, and landscape architect, McGregor Coxall, on the expansion project known as the Sydney Modern Project, which aims to double the existing exhibition space and create seamless connections between indoor and outdoor spaces.
The new building is designed by Pritzker Prize-winning Tokyo-based architects Kazuyo Sejima + Ryue Nishizawa/ SANAA, with Architectus serving as executive architect.
“It’s an honor to work on the Sydney Modern Project – the expansion of one of Australia’s and Sydney’s most prominent art destinations,” said Kathryn Gustafson. “Public open spaces are, by definition inclusive and diverse and it’s exciting to create welcoming and unique experiences for all visitors to connect with the environment both natural and cultural.”
The landscape design will create a unified art museum campus connecting the existing and newbuildings, unfolding as a sequence of experiences for visitors across open spaces and gardensthat are free and accessible to all, 24 hours a day.
The design complements the architecture of the Gallery’s new building as well as maximizing open space and public amenity. There will be 381 trees across the campus when the expansion is completed in 2022, an increase of more than 70% on the number of trees before construction.
Learn more in the Australian Publication: Architecture & Design.
October 23, 2020 - Shannon Nichol gave the international keynote presentation “Local Ecology in Concept Design” at the 2020 Hengshui Lake Eco-Civilization International Conference held October 23 through 26 in Hengshui, Hubei Province, China. Shannon introduced GGN’s design philosophy and emphasized the importance of working with local communities and ecologies in projects throughout the design process. The presentation was pre-recorded and over 30,000 audiences tuned in, virtually as well as in person.
Image Credit: 2020 Hengshui Lake Eco-Civilization International Conference
October 21, 2020 - This morning, the Tidal Basin Ideas Lab unveiled ideas from five leading landscape architecture firms reimagining the future of Washington DC’s iconic Tidal Basin and National Mall. The ideas – from DLANDstudio, GGN, Hood Design Studio, James Corner Field Operations, and Reed Hilderbrand – are presented in a museum-quality online exhibition.
GGN envisions a dynamic series of incremental changes that will adapt the site to the environmental challenges of the future and give rise to a new cultural aesthetic. Achieved over three stages between today and 2090, this adaptive plan will accommodate forecasted sea level rise and will integrate regional ecologies to bring an overdue, ecological point of view. Monuments will be adapted, protected, or relocated to ensure the national importance of this collective space.
“While there is an immediate urgency, this strategy lays the groundwork for the next hundred years. The choices we make now will have significant and long lasting impact for multiple generations,” said Rodrigo Abela.
Learn more on the Tidal Basin Ideas Lab's website.
April 29, 2020 - ASLA will offer a rebroadcast of Drawing Still Matters: Exploring the Value of Drawing in Landscape Architecture, GGN Principal David Malda’s panel discussion with Michael Batts (STEWART) and Kona Gray (EDSA), first delivered at the ASLA Conference in Landscape Architecture in San Diego in November 2019.
The discussion explores the power of drawing to connect cultures, disciplines, and generations, with particular reference to GGN’s work on the John Trevino Jr. Metropolitan Park Master Plan in Austin, Texas, thus supporting an on-going dialogue around the unique potential for this place.
April 24, 2020 - GGN is a supporting sponsor of the Burke Museum’s annual Spring Gala, which will be held remotely on April 24 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The theme of this year’s gala is “Metamorphosis,” a reference both to the annual transformations of early spring and to the New Burke Museum, in whose metamorphosis GGN has been honored to play a part.
The New Burke landscape features a level “yard” within the sloping site that functions as a grand forecourt and event space for the museum while also accommodating parking. At the south edge of the Burke Yard, seat steps extend into the Camas Field – a level terrace of soil showcasing the Pacific Northwest’s meadow plants, grown and donated by Oxbow Farms.
February 26, 2020 - Jennifer Guthrie delivered the Charles H. Burger Landscape Architecture Lecture at North Carolina State University. The lecture, entitled "20 + 20", reflected on the practice and work of GGN over the past twenty years, and looked to what the next twenty years will bring. Projects discussed included the Lurie Garden and India Basin Shoreline Park.
A recording of the lecture in its entirety can be viewed online here.
December 3, 2019 - GGN was honored to participate in the planting of the first camas bulbs (Camassia quamash) at the newly installed meadow at the New Burke Museum. Tribal Elders Connie McCloud (Puyallup Tribe of Indians) and Rex Buck (Wanapum) led a planting ceremony with prayer and song, emphasizing the importance of this plant in native traditions.
Oxbow Farm’s Native Plant Program Manager, Bridget McNassa demonstrated how to plant the bulbs, which serve as a key food source for native people of the Pacific Northwest, while GGN’s Shannon Nichol encouraged an intuitive approach to planting the bulbs that would mimic their growth patterns in the wild.
We look forward to seeing the meadow thrive in seasons to come!
November 13, 2019 - GGN is participating in four education sessions at the 2019 ASLA Conference on Landscape Architecture in San Diego, CA, November 15-18, 2019.
On Friday, Lauren Schmidt is presenting Zero to One: Open Your Practice to the World of BIM with Xue (Phyllis) Zhou of AECOM and Aiden Ackerman of the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry. This workshop is addressing the challenges and solutions landscape teams face when starting to use BIM. Lessons from project cases are being shared, with broad research of how numerous landscape firms are scaling up BIM use. Participants will get hands-on practice on modeling a sample landscape project and evaluating workflow among different software.
Also on Friday, David Malda is speaking on the topic of Drawing Matters: Exploring the Value of Drawing in Landscape Architecture with Michale Batts of STEWART and Kona Gray of EDSA. Rather than the familiar debate over digital versus hand graphics, this session considers the value of drawing as a process connected to seeing, thinking, and engaging throughout design.
On Saturday, Kathryn Gustafson is speaking to Finding Design: Case Studies in the Creative Process with Walter Hood of Hood Design Studio and Susan Cohen. This session reviews ways in which an active imagination and a creative spirit fuels the design process in landscape architecture.
On Sunday, Kara Weaver is speaking about Integrating Security into Site Design: Evolving Strategies for Protecting Public Spaces with Margaret Plumb of Design Workshop and Len Hopper of Weintraub Diaz Landscape Architecture. This session examines how landscape architects are protecting urban public spaces by integrating innovative security features into a site while creating vibrant public spaces.
November 11, 2019 - GGN helped to organize a volunteer event to plant 30,000 crocus corms, donated by Aedas, the project architect, at Seattle Children’s Research Institute’s new Building Cure in downtown Seattle. Each spring, the early-blooming crocus will be a symbol of hope and expanding cures for years to come.
November 3, 2019 - Kathryn Gustafson delivered a lecture at the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art entitled “The Sky is Mine.” Followed by an intimate wine reception with 250 guests, the lecture focused on the creative development and impact of five projects Kathryn worked on with GGN and Gustafson Porter + Bowman, respectively: the City of Paris' Site Tour Eiffel winning design just awarded in May; the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain in London; the Robert and Arlene Kogod Courtyard at the Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery; the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C.; and Valencia's Parque Central.
Proceeds from the event supported the Heronswood Art in the Garden fund.
October 23, 2019 - Shannon Nichol delivered the second annual Adleman Lecture at Cornell University, titled “Repair Work: Drawing and Building Parts of the Landscape.” This annual memorial lecture is endowed by Michael R. Van Valkenburgh in honor of Professor Marvin I. Adleman. The lecture took place at 6:15 on October 23 at 151 Warren Hall on the Cornell campus in Ithaca, NY.
October 22, 2019 - Today, the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Trust for the National Mall, in partnership with the National Park Service, announced the five landscape architecture firms participating in the Tidal Basin Ideas Lab. GGN, DLANDstudio, Hood Design Studio, James Corner Field Operations, and Reed Hilderbrand are working in concert to address the challenges and opportunities facing the National Mall Tidal Basin.
"The Tidal Basin is a unique landscape with important historical and environmental significance for Washington, DC,” said Kathryn Gustafson. “How we approach, think, and act on the Tidal Basin will be a great learning process that will evolve. The Idea Lab is timely, as similar challenges to important historic sites need to be addressed in many other places around the world."
Unlike a Design Competition, which typically selects a winner with a conclusive master plan, the Ideas Lab is a platform for the exchange of approaches and solutions between designers, stakeholders, and the public. Concepts will be provocative and challenging, presenting cultural landscape opportunities in a new light, in order to take on fundamental issues in a comprehensive and respectful way. Results of the Ideas Lab will be on view at a curated exhibition in Washington, D.C. in spring 2020 and available widely online. The results will showcase creative collaboration and design opportunities relevant for the Tidal Basin today and for generations to come.
The forum is presented by American Express, with Skidmore Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) serving as civic partner to the initiative.
More information is available on the Save the Tidal Basin [Ideas Lab] website.
October 21, 2019 - Kathryn Gustafson delivered the Alan H Rider Distinguished Lecture at Carnegie Mellon University on October 21. Her lecture, titled “Designing in Paris, Valencia, Hong Kong & Hazelwood,” addressed the complexities of designing on sites with vastly different challenges: overwhelming tourism, invasive infrastructures, and industrial migrations, and discussed past projects including including the landscape design of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in DC and the public plaza of Hazelwood Green in Pittsburgh.
October 3, 2019 - GGN is busy working on many exciting projects, and we are seeking people with a passion for design, problem solving, and discovery to join us. We are especially interested in individuals with a strong background in leading/strategizing technical document sets.
Find more information about how to apply at ggnltd.com/jobs.
October 2, 2019 - Yesterday the American Society of Landscape Architecture announced that GGN’s Lower Rainier Vista & Pedestrian Land Bridge has received a National ASLA Professional Honor Award in General Design. The awards presentation ceremony will take place during the ASLA Conference on Landscape Architecture, to be held this November in San Diego, California.
The Lower Rainier Vista project at the University of Washington extends and completes the Olmsted Brothers’ historic vision for a monumental campus axis within the intersection of many transportation modes. The design references Collegiate Gothic forms and uses fine-tuned grading of the Vista to frame views, integrate modern infrastructure, and provide new ADA connections. A new land bridge facilitates multimodal integration of pedestrians, cyclists, buses, and automobiles between the new light rail station at Husky Stadium, the University of Washington Medical Center, and the University campus heart. KPFF was the structural and civil engineer on the project.
Founded in 1899, the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) is the professional association for landscape architects in the United States, representing nearly 15,000 members. The Society’s mission is to advance landscape architecture through advocacy, communication, education, and fellowship.
September, 18, 2019 - Yesterday the International Federation of Landscape Architect's President, James Hayter, announced at the 2019 World Congress in Oslo, Norway, that Landscape Architect Kathryn Gustafson has been selected as the winner of the 2019 Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe Award. This award is the highest honour that the International Federation of Landscape Architects can bestow to a landscape architect.
In her acceptance speech, Kathryn said, "The sky is ours - everything under - take good care of it."
The award recognizes a living landscape architect whose lifetime achievements and contributions have had a unique and lasting impact on the welfare of society and the environment and on the promotion of the profession of landscape architecture. The award is bestowed annually on an academic public or private practitioner whose work and achievements are respected internationally.
August 9, 2019 - GGN is hiring in both of our locations, Seattle and Washington, DC, for a full range of experience levels. Come join our diverse group of passionate, creative, and committed designers, who bring a wide array of personal and working paths into the profession, while sharing humble curiosity and a love for challenging technical and practical puzzles.
Find more information about how to apply at ggnltd.com/jobs.
August 29, 2019 - The construction of the Hazelwood Green Plaza is underway. A two-acre space south of the historic Mill 19 building, the Plaza is the first outdoor public space and civic heart of the 178-acre riverfront development.
“There will be something for each person to delight in: from bugs and butterflies in the pollinator gardens, to flexible spaces for impromptu play or planned events, to water elements to dip one’s toes, to shady seating areas for quiet conversation. A slice of the past and a bright future will fuse together in this unique place,” said Kathryn Gustafson.
The rendering of the Grove is by Laurel Li. The water feature is framed by shaded, intimately-scaled greens, where users are invited to pause, socialize, and relax amidst lush plantings and the calming sounds of water.
Read the full press release on the Hazelwood Green website.
June 12, 2019 - This Sunday, Jennifer Guthrie and Bernie Alonzo will help lead the afternoon portion of the University of Washington campus walking tour that is taking place during the Society of College and University Planning (SCUP) 2019 Conference in Seattle, WA. The sold-out tour led by Kristine Kenney, University Landscape Architect and Director of Campus Design and Planning, is highlighting recent projects that enhance the campus’ character during a period of rapid growth for the University of Washington. The featured GGN projects are West Campus Residences & Streetscape, Mercer Court & UW Farm, Life Sciences Building, and Lower Rainier Vista & Pedestrian Land Bridge.
With UW Arborist Jaclynn Eckhardt; Caitlyn Clauson, Chair of Interdisciplinary Initiatives at Sasaki; and Romil Sheth, Principal at Sasaki.
June 10, 2019 - This past weekend, GGN and Oxbow Farm & Conservation Center hosted a discussion about Pacific Northwest Natives with the Seattle-area landscape architecture community. Oxbow has been an important partner by providing research-backed advice, rare inventory, and particularly high-quality plants that finally showcase the beauty of our native plants to a broader audience. They are also working hard to produce information that can be used by other nurseries when attempting to propagate, package, and market Pacific Northwest Natives in ways that minimize the environmental impacts associated with the conventional nursery industry. The discussion, which took place in the Native Plant Nursery, was led by Oxbow Executive Director Lisa Pawlek Jaguzny, Oxbow Native Plant Manager Bridget McNassar, and GGN Founding Principal Shannon Nichol.
June 10, 2019 - GGN is pleased to announce the promotions of Kara Weaver to Senior Associate, Laurel Li to Associate, Alex McCay to Associate, Hannah Vondrak to Associate, and Joanie Walbert to Associate.
Kara Weaver, ASLA, PLA, LEED AP BD+C, has nearly 15 years of experience designing and documenting public projects ranging from conceptual and interpretive master plans to precise detailing and tight grading over structure. Kara shines on projects that pose complex challenges, require intensive coordination between disciplines, and provide opportunities for innovative and elegant problem solving. She is currently the project manager for the Civic Park at Hemisfair in San Antonio, TX, the Master Plan for John Treviño Jr. Metropolitan Park in Austin TX, and the Health Sciences Education Building at the University of Washington in Seattle, WA.
Since joining GGN in 2015, Laurel Li has contributed her great artistry and sensibility for landscape to many of GGN’s projects. Laurel’s commitment to her project work and her teammates is an inspiration to all at GGN. Through her design leadership and collaboration, Laurel smoothly moves projects forward. She has worked on Umekita 2 in Osaka, Japan, Oceanwide in San Francisco, CA, and Cedar Town Center Master Plan in Woodinville, WA.
Alex McCay’s background in business provides a unique understanding of the complex interplay of urban systems. Alex displays structure and discipline in his work that translates into strong ideas and the ability to develop those ideas into buildable landscapes. His design work at GGN has included Hazelwood Green Plaza in Pittsburgh, PA, the Civic Park at Hemisfair in San Antonio, TX, and Rainier Square in Seattle, WA.
Hannah Vondrak bases her elegant design solutions in rigorous technical skill. In addition to her strong verbal and illustrative communication skills, Hannah has the unique ability to meld thoughtful design intent into true experiences. Since joining GGN in 2016, she has worked on the Athens Chancery Major Rehabilitation at the American Embassy in Athens, Greece, 900 New York in Washington, DC, and the REI Headquarters in Bellevue, WA.
Since joining GGN in 2015, Joanie Walbert, ASLA, PLA, has developed into a strong and versatile landscape architect who successfully navigated the path to licensure in 2018. Joanie’s wide range of design and communication skills have benefitted several of GGN projects from public parks to private campuses, including Smith Cove Park in Seattle, WA, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Campus in Seattle, WA, and Long Beach Civic Center in Long Beach, CA.
April 5, 2019 - David Malda is participating in the National Design Awards panel moderated by Cara McCarty, Director of Curatorial at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. Fellow panelists are Chris Reed, Founder and Director, Stoss Landscape Urbanism, Richard Roark, Partner, OLIN, and Craig Wilkins, architect, academic, and author.
The discussion is this coming Thursday, April 11, from 5:30-8:00pm at MoGo Warehouse 6545 Saint Antoine Street, Detroit, MI. Part of the Design Core Detroit’s Drinks x Design, tickets are complimentary with RSVP.
April 1, 2019 - This past weekend, Kona Gray, FASLA, of EDSA led a Drawing in Design Workshop with participating University of Washington College of Built Environments students.
Kona brings his international design experience, in 30+ countries, and personal design process to the Drawing in Design series, which is hosted by GGN and UW Landscape Architecture with Dr. Thaisa Way.
(Photo by Thaisa Way)
February 28, 2019 - Today Shannon Nichol presented "Re-grounding the Modern Northwest: Bringing Regionalism Home with Historically Informed Design" at the British Columbia Recreation and Parks Association 42nd Annual Provincial Parks and Grounds Spring Training in Langley, BC.
This photo of Shannon by Rachel Ormiston of the New Burke Museum captures the delivery of native plants from Oxbow Farm & Conservation Center to the New Burke.
February 21, 2019 - The Austin City Council confirmed on Thursday that GGN has been selected to develop a master plan for John Treviño Jr. Metropolitan Park at Morrison Ranch. The 330-acre plot of parkland was purchased by the City of Austin in 2003.
GGN looks forward to working with the Austin community to articulate a vision for the park that guides its future development and use. The resulting master plan will serve as a framework for preliminary design concepts and outline a phased implementation strategy.
GGN will collaborate with some of Austin’s most exceptional thinkers and community connectors, including dwg. for local landscape architecture, Pink Consulting for community outreach, Siglo Group for environmental site assessment and mapping, DAVCAR Engineering Services for civil engineering, HVJ Associates for cost estimating, and Michael Hsu Office of Architecture. National expertise is contributed by Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates’ Austin office for transportation, mobility, and parking, Sherwood Design Engineers for sustainability and site engineering, TheatreDNA for event and theatrical planning, and HR&A Advisors for economic analysis.
February 6, 2019 - Tess Schiavone is a panelist at this evening's Learning Landscapes discussion sponsored by AIA Seattle at the Center for Architecture & Design.
Brought to you by AIA Commitee on Architecture for Education, the panel discussion is moderated by Kas Kinkead of Cascade Design Collaborative with Peter Donaldson, Sustainability Ambassador Program; Vinita Sidhu, Site Workshop; and Mark Tilbe, Murase.
(Photo of Mercer Court & UW Farm by Catherine Tighe).
January 30, 2019 - Today Shannon Nichol will present at the iLandscape Conference in Schaumburg, IL. In her lecture, Designing Grounded Respites in the Global and Virtual Age, Shannon will share proven methods in designing landscapes such as the Lurie Garden at Millennium Park, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the National Museum of African American History & Culture.
The focus of the presentation will be on the importance for landscape designers to find and express the often-hidden and overlooked local-landscape characteristics and cultural stories. Local plants, building traditions, and landscape patterns will be discussed incorporating seemingly regular, vernacular context into designed landscapes.
Sponsored by the Millennium Park Foundation.