Landscape Architect & Specifier News

APR 2017

LASN is a photographically oriented, professional journal featuring topics of concern and state-of-the-art projects designed or influenced by registered Landscape Architects.

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78 Landscape Architect and Specifier News Above & Right: The 70' x 100' Shakespeare Garden at Northwestern University features 40 'Maglio' path lights. There are also 4 LMWL micro well lights powered with 3-watt LEDs to accent the fountain and sundial. That lighting is from Auroralight. In addition, there are LED down light fixtures mounted to a tree strap to create a moonlight effect for the William Shakespeare sculpture and the fountain. A Midsummer Night's Dream in Shakespeare's Garden For the first time in its century old history the Shakespeare Garden on the campus of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois can be enjoy after dark. The garden was originally established to commemorate the 300th anniversary of Shakespeare's death (April 23, 1616). Lighting and other improvements to the garden became possible when the Garden Club of Evanston received a gift of $100,000 from Northwestern University in honor of the club's 100th anniversary. Chicago Lighting Designer Peter Hugh wanted to recreate the magical scene (Act 2, Scene 2) in Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream (1596) in which Titania, Queen of Fairies, and her train of fairies come out at night. "From the moment we heard Peter Hugh's vision for the garden's lighting, we knew we wanted that for the Shakespeare Garden," recalls Claudia Lane, president of The Garden Club. Hugh advised The Garden Club and the university to think of the lighting installation in terms of longevity, better performance and less maintenance versus the lowest upfront costs. Andy Siegel, a senior specifications consultant at Archibald & Meek, a Chicago-based rep of lighting and controls manufacturers, brought in samples of Auroralight's 'Maglio' LMG1– 90s path/ accent light fixture powered by single 2.5- watt LEDs. "We let the staff at Northwestern hold the fixtures in their hands so they could appreciate the quality in workmanship and the beauty found in the use of solid copper and brass," explains Hugh. The rotational glare shields and dimming capabilities of the fixtures allowed the lighting designer to fine-tune the lighting effects with pools of illumination and shadows. The SWA-Houston Connection Above: The SWA-designed Avenida Houston. PHOTO: JONNU SINGLETON, SWA Texas is all about "big." Houston (pop. 2.239 million) is the South's largest city, and the country's fourth largest metropolis. As the host to the Feb. 5 Super Bowl, a lot of attention was drawn to Houston and the downtown, including the SWA- designed Avenida Houston, the new plaza adjacent to the George Brown Convention Center. The plaza replaced six lanes of traffic, creating open space and adding 10 art installations. SWA's Houston studio has been instrumental in catalyzing downtown Houston's transformation. In addition to the new plaza, the firm has proposed to eliminate part of the overhead freeway to make more green space. SWA's design for Houston's 160-acre Buffalo Bayou Park (Houston was founded in 1836 near the banks of Buffalo Bayou) was just awarded a local ULI Development of Distinction Award. Harriet Tubman Center Debuts The new Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center in Church Creek, Maryland opened to the public on March 11. The 17-acre site is within the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge on the eastern shores of the Chesapeake, less than 10 miles from Tubman's birthplace. The rural landscape has changed little since Tubman's days. Tubman, née Araminta Ross (1822 – March 10, 1913) was born into slavery, became an abolitionist, shepherded some 70 slaves to freedom and even spied for the U.S. Army during the Civil War. The center is the gateway to the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway, a 125-mile driving tour through the landscapes and waterscapes of Maryland's eastern shore, which includes 36 historic sites related to the Underground Railroad. Below: The Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center was designed to achieve LEED Silver certification. Among the center's sustainable features is a bioretention pond, vegetative roofs and rain barrels. Architect: GWWO, Inc. / Landscape Architect: Mahan Rykiel Associates.

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