Talking heads: how was it for you?

We ask built environment professionals where the opportunities for collaboration and innovation lie…

The Academic

Ed Wall is academic leader for landscape at the University of Greenwich and writes on landscape architecture and urban design.

‘While the speed at which technology is developing can seem excessive, new technologies are merely tools that allow us to see, measure and record in different ways – and with which we can develop proposals. It can often feel that there is a dominance of digital imagery in the landscape industry, but there will always be an aspect of training and practice that includes handdrawn work and analogue techniques. We encourage our students to engage with social media, such as the collective blog www.thelandscape. org, in order to showcase their design projects and explore different design processes. In the end you still have to understand the complex physicality of a site by spending time there, and there are limitations to digital – it takes the same amount of time for concrete to dry whether you design by hand or on computer.’

The Client

Rose Jaijee was Walthamstow Wetlands’ co-ordinator for Waltham Forest Council and now works as a consultant.

‘Most people’s experience of the public domain is determined by the quality of the spaces they move through and linger in. Yet the design of new spaces that emerge as a result of new development is often an afterthought. A successful project in my view is one that fully integrates buildings and landscape design, placing an equal emphasis on standards, quality and long-term management. Also key to success is taking the time to understand the existing distinctive landscape character and building on this to create a sense of place and reinforce local identity. Landscape design is fundamental to shaping our relationship with our environment and creating places we want to be in. The process also offers a unique and important opportunity to challenge the assumed divide between cities and nature by creating space for wildlife and access to nature within the urban environment.’

The Planner

Katie Wray is a town planner and assistant director at Deloitte Real Estate in Manchester, where she leads on heritage planning for a diverse range of projects.

‘I like to see landscape architects involved in the process from the beginning, although unfortunately this does sometimes depend on when the client chooses to get them involved! Being enthusiastic also really helps. Often we are relying on the landscape architect to bring strong, tangible public benefits to the project through a well-designed landscape scheme. To achieve this, a strong and detailed understanding of the brief and good liaison with the architect and planner, along with the client, is key. When the project is a landscape scheme in itself it is even more important to understand the brief and all the planning objectives. An ability to write well and explain the design development and design intent of your scheme is also very valuable and will make the planner your friend for life!’

The Project Director

Rob Kingdom is project director for Hull City Council’s 2017 City of Culture legacy project, Hull: Yorkshire’s Maritime City.

‘Queen’s Gardens is a series of sunken gardens at the heart of Hull city centre designed by architect Sir Frederick Gibberd in the 1950s from an old dock that was once Britain’s largest piece of inland waterway. As part of the overall project to provide a new setting for Hull’s maritime heritage, we want to restore that hidden dock in the city centre and create a thoroughfare for students and an open events space, so we as a client need meaningful consultation that can carry the local population and statutory consultees along the way. The landscape architect has to have persuasive powers, to be able to explain drawings and to show stakeholders how we have adapted our proposals, and also work closely with highway engineers, major landowners and architects.’

The Architect

Howard Miller is a chartered architect and director of Howard Miller Design in Liverpool, with expertise in projects that are a hybrid of architecture and landscape design.

‘People assume that social media is the magic bullet to getting work, but older people generally hold the purse strings and they perhaps don’t use social media as much. Nor can social media replace being embedded within a community long term. I have found initiating a competition entry and putting together a team of other disciplines is a good way of being asked to collaborate on other projects. I would be very careful going down some routes, for example pro bono work, which can exhaust the time of a small business. If you are going to do something for free, make sure you have a written agreement stating exactly where your services end. If you aren’t getting paid, what else can they offer you? Publicity? A portfolio piece? A referral to paid work? Payment subject to the work winning a bid for funding? Be explicit about what you expect them to do in return.’

The Artist

Victoria Pratt is an artist and creative director of Leedsbased Invisible Flock, an interactive arts studio creating site-specific digital and participatory projects all over the world.

‘How do you keep all the stakeholders in a city happy? For us the collaborative approach is always the best way forward and – depending on the project – we work with scientists, academics, students, urban designers and landscape architects, who could certainly be participants at workshop and pre-planning stage. There are always interesting collaborations between fields, to find creative ways of understanding how a place is used. There are so many layers of people who use and think about a public space and we can’t take these deeply embedded, emotional attachments for granted. Sometimes it’s difficult to have the conversation but artists are good at getting stuck in and talking to people – we are almost like activists and can be bold in our approach. Our projects are more of a provocation or conversation with a community, taking it in a more powerful, responsive direction than a commissioned artwork perhaps would.’