Modern and Contemporary Landscape Architecture

3 units

This course examines significant theories and discourses in modern landscape architecture that have informed contemporary modes of practice. Organized around specific topics and lenses (such as site, ecology, art, and sustainability), the course aims to provide a number of critical perspectives on the relevance of landscape architecture as a cultural practice. Readings and discussions will supplement lectures to trace back contemporary ideas to the late 19th and early 20th centuries. We will look at how broader transformations in social, environmental, economic and technological realms have affected discourse in landscape. To this end, students will be introduced to definitions that distinguish between landscape as a medium, landscape as an ideology, and landscape as a profession. Through weekly reviews of seminal projects and built works, we will examine significant styles, movements and design principles in landscape architecture. The course incorporates field trips and presentations by visitors, as well as applied research. It is open to both undergraduate and graduate students in the disciplines of landscape architecture, urban design and architecture.