MLA Portfolio- Molly Foote- 2024

2024 | MOLLY FOOTE | LANDSCAPE

ARCHITECTURE

INTRODUCTION

Molly Foote

Simpsonville, SC

(864) 663-2694

mollyelois@yahoo.com

ABOUT ME

I am finishing my final semester as a graduate student in Clemson University’s MLA program. In the far future I hope to teach, but currently I want to gain as much work experience in the field as possible and aim for licensure. I love to learn and apply myself in everything I do. I enjoy music, art, travelling, and finding inspiration in the beauty of the world around me.

EDUCATION

FALL 2018-SPRING 2022

Clemson University

Bachelor of Landscape Architecture

Minor: Sustainability

Summa Cum Laude

FALL 2022-SPRING 2024

Clemson University

Master of Landscape Architecture

EXPERIENCE

SPRING 2022-SPRING 2024

Professor’s Assistant

Clemson University Department of Landscape Architecture

SUMMER 2022, SUMMER 2023

Summer Intern

J.K. Tiller Associates Inc. in Bluffton, SC

FALL 2021

Design Coach

Clemson University Department of Landscape Architecture

SUMMER 2019-SUMMER 2021

Design Consultant

Design by Lee Landscaping in Simpsonville, SC

AWARDS AND CERTIFICATIONS

FALL 2023 : Featured in Dezeen School Show

SPRING 2023: Student’s Choice Award for Teaching Assistant

FALL 2022: Small UAS Remote Pilot’s License

SPRING 2022: ASLA Award of Honor

FALL 2020 : SCASLA Student Merit Award

FALL 2018-SPRING 2019, SPRING 2020-SPRING 2022 : Clemson University President’s List

WIND RIVER DEMONSTRATION NURSERY

FALL 2023

GRACE CHURCH NATURAL BURIAL CEMETERY

FALL 2023-SPRING 2024

INTERNSHIP

SUMMER 2022, SUMMER 2023

SELECTED WORKS

FALL 2018-FALL 2023

GROW SUSTAINABLE TOGETHER

WIND RIVER DEMONSTRATION NURSERY

LOCATION: CARSON, WASHINGTON

TERM: FALL 2023

CLASS: INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH AND DESIGN

PROFESSOR: MATT NICOLETTE

Grow Sustainable Together is a design project which invokes the legacy of the Historic Wind River site and the surrounding community, bringing about a new demonstration nursery that will sustain local economy, natural resources, native plants, and visitor education. The new Wind River Demonstration Nursery bridges private production with public experience, using education and commerce to engage visitors with the plant nursery’s vision and its everyday execution. This project grew out of an interdisciplinary studio which saw collaboration between architecture, landscape architecture, graduate, and undergraduate students, as well as engagement with community members and the Wind River Trust. The Sustainable SITES initiative was also integrated to develop a sound and sustainable design, with particular focus on credits which supported the design project’s intent.

PROJECT BACKGROUND

This design project took place in Skamania County of Washington, at the Historic Wind River site. The site is a quilt of rich woven history, being one of the first sites of Forest Service activities as the organization researched methods for reseeding wildfire-devastated forests. This led to the establishment of the oldest arboretum in the Pacific Northwest, one of the Forest Service’s first ranger stations, and eventually the old Wind River Nursery in 1909. The Wind River Nursery persisted until it was closed in 1997, leading to major job loss for many in the community. The Wind River Trust, which was established in 2020, seeks to reactivate this historic site to become a landmark of legacy for the community.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT EXERCISES AND MASTERPLANNING

The project site, which was over 120 acres, was approached by interdisciplinary student teams to develop a masterplan. The studio had the opportunity to travel to the site in Washington, allowing for first-hand experience of the Pacific Northwest and direct engagement with the community. The entire studio participated in preparing and running several engagement exercises, including open discussion, dot sticker mapping, and inviting written comments on relevant topics. The team also engaged in a design charette on site, sketching initial masterplan ideas with community members.

The team masterplan focused on the concept of legacy through time, which interwoven with community goals created several features such as an interpretive mound landscape; a new entrance and expansion of the historic arboretum; a hiker haven with community space, lodging, and dining; a new visitor center with education gardens; a central native meadow; a retreat campus; and new demonstration nursery.

Design by team (Molly Foote, Alex Leonard, Kinzer Hurt, Emily Slattenburgy), graphic by other

SECTION A: RAIN GARDENS AND GREENHOUSE

1. parking lot

2. permeable parking

3. display rain garden

4. walking path

5. rain catchment water tank for irrigation

6. gutter-connected greenhouses

7. natural rain landscap

GOAL

WATER AND ENERGY EFFICIENCY

through raised planters, rain capture, biofuels and ergonomics.

SUSTAINABLE SITES CRITERIA

C3.4-Reduce Outdoor Water Use

Conserve water resources by encouraging alternative irrigation methods and water conservation strategies that limit or eliminate the use of potable water, natural surface water, and groundwater for landscape irrigation and other outdoor use.

Reduce water use by 75% and use at least 50% nonpotable water.

OTHER: C8.6 -Use renewable sources for landscape electricity needs

SUSTAINABLE BY THE NUMBERS

AVERAGE ANNUAL PRECIPITATION: 99.7 INCHES (142 DAYS WITH PRECIPITATION)

GREENHOUSE WATER CONSUMPTION: 3840 GALLONS / DAY

ROOF RUNOFF: 7512 GALLONS/1 INCH OF RAIN

TANK MAXIMUM CAPACITY (FOUR 10’X8’ BARRELS): : 15,000 GALLONS

SUSTAINABLE DESIGN

Sustainability was another community concern, especially when it came to water usage, affordability, and impact of the project. The demonstration is designed not only to maximize rainwater harvest for use in greenhouses and gardens, but also as a functional workspace with realistic dimensions.

Extensive research into nursery production and water management shaped the hardscape of the design. Certain areas are designated for only employees, while still allowing visitors to experience the native nursery process.

SECTION B: VISITOR PAVILION AND NATIVE GARDENS

1. walking paths

2. cultivated gardens

3. patio

4. visitor pavilion

5. patio doors

6. informative displays

7. west entrance doors

8. natural landscape window wall

9. natural succession landscape

GOAL

NATIVE SEED AND PLANT PRODUCTION

as a response to native habitat loss, seed shortage, and wildfires.

SUSTAINABLE SITES CRITERIA

C4.6- Conserve and use native plants

Foster habitat for native wildlife that is necessary for plant reproduction by conserving or installing plants that are native to the site’s ecoregion. Implement 60% native plant species in the design.

OTHER: C4.7- Conserve and restore native plants community

C4.11- Reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire

NATIVE BY THE NUMBERS

NATIVE NURSERY SECTION: 40.6 ACRES

EXISTING NATIVE FOREST TO REMAIN : 21.6 ACRES (52%)

NATIVE PLANT CULTIVATION FIELDS: 14.5 ACRES (36%)

NATIVE DEMONSTRATION CAMPUS: 5.1 ACRES (12%)

PLANTING DESIGN

Community engagement exercises revealed that the stakeholders placed great value and emphasis in native plants. Not only are the central to the history of the previous nursery, but the address many local issues such as wildfires, restoration, seed shortage, and water conservation.

Natives are showcased in the 100% native nursery in a walking loop where visitors can view native plants growing in nature, in gardens, and in greenhouses. Natives are also at work in rain gardens and runoff buffers.

GOAL

VISITOR EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

of nursery production, site heritage, and sustainable native landscapes.

SUSTAINABLE SITES CRITERIA

C9.1 -Promote sustainability awareness and education

Promote understanding of sustainability in ways that positively influence user behavior by interpreting on-site features and processes.

Provide 3+ interactive education elements and provide sustainability education programming.

OTHER: C6.2- Provide optimum site accessibility, safety, + wayfinding

The last goal was not about quantitative measurements, but qualitative programming. Including visitors in the nursery process, to learn about and support the production of native plants, was central to the design. This was met through the proposal of interactive education features throughout the nursery.

These proposed features included everything from plant growing methods, to plant identification tags which spanned gardens and commercial areas, to walkable rain gardens, to bootbrush displays.

RETURN TO THE LAND

GRACE CHURCH NATURAL BURIAL CEMETERY

LOCATION:ANDERSON, SOUTH CAROLINA

TERM: FALL 2023-SPRING 2024

CLASS: RESEARCH COLLOQUIUM, TERMINAL STUDIO

PROFESSORS: DR. HALA NASSAR, DR. HYEJUNG CHANG

Return to the Land is an exploration of cemetery design, culture, and sustainability. This project was a personal choice for the graduate terminal project. Backed by research that questions our modern practices and their consequences on environmental health, cultural richness, and human healing, Return to the Land works with natural burial as a design solution. I was fortunate in this project to work with a real client, engage with stakeholders, and incorportate community needs and wants into a natural cemetery which restores people, ecology, and burial heritage.

PROJECT OVERVIEW

Topic: Sustainable Cemetery Design

Issues: Degradation of burial design legacy, ‘death taboo’ stunting grieving practices, pollution from modern funerary practices

Solution: Natural Burial Landscapes

Research Question: How can designing with natural burial lead to a balance between memorialization, ecological succession, and healthy mourning, while reestablishing burial grounds as significant cultural landscapes?

Literature Review Topics: Healthy Mourning, Memorials, Restorative Gardens

Client/Community: Grace Church of SC

Site: 12 acre rural site, previous tree farm

Research Methods: Phenomenology

RESEARCH TOPICS

CLIENT AND SITE

RESEARCH AND DESIGN: PROJECT ABSTRACT

Burial, interring the remains of the deceased in the earth, is one of the oldest human traditions and has long been both a practical and cultural response to death. Burial grounds are also one of the oldest forms of landscape architecture. Throughout human history, the development of burial practices from ancient mounds to monumental tombs to community cemeteries has developed a rich legacy of burial landscapes. However, modern cemeteries and funeral practices face environmental, economic, and emotional issues which impact ecological and human health, environmental pollution, resource consumption, funeral affordability, and grief and healing. Rising awareness of these issues has led to the development of new burial typologies, one of which is natural burial. This typology refers to burial without embalming, cremation, or a reinforced casket. Natural burial is usually chosen as an environmentally responsible method of burial, an affordable funeral option, or as a religious response to personal beliefs. These three principles are all foundational to the site and community for this project—a new natural burial land owned by Grace Church of South Carolina. The rural 12-acre parcel presents an opportunity to design a natural burial ground as a cultural landscape which celebrates and maintains the natural environment while memorializing the deceased and supporting the mourning practices of the bereaved. Personal engagement with the project client was reached through a meeting with Grace Church staff to discuss their experiences and visions, which were considered through the lens of hermeneutic phenomenology. The principles which emerged from community research and engagement guided the final design of an ecological, sensitive, and symbolic burial landscape.

KEYWORDS: Natural burial, memorial, cemetery, ecology, mourning, religion, sustainable

SITE ANALYSIS

2. The site is very flat with little elevation change.

The natural burial site is not located adjacent to any single campus for Grace Church, instead occupying a 12-acre property in rural Anderson County, SC. Since the site is semi-private and its users weren’t necessarily the local community, more focus was placed on site specific analysis than regional analysis or local cultural analysis. Multiple visits to the site as well as analysis of maps led to several important observations:

1. The site lies within several easements, including a transmission tower easement and a conservation easement, the latter of which covers the whole site. This informed where burial grounds could be located.

3. Water drains slowly and tended to pool inside depressions after rain. The creek on site is a great location for native ecology.

4. Circulation consists of gravel roads and natural footpaths.

SITE EXPERIENCE ANALYSIS

Understanding how individuals experience and connect to the land was a consideration for site analysis, community engagement, and design. This collage experiments with distilling crucial information from typical aerial analysis maps (seen left) and displaying it in a medium which conveys feeling and the spirit of place.

Mostlydeciduoustrees, acoupleof evergreens

Cooleralong theedge, centerishot

Wildmeadow,lotsofinsectnoise!

Hollies movedinto rowsthat dividespace

Crackles!

FINAL MASTERPLAN:

RETURN TO THE LANDReviving Cemeteries as Cultural, Ecological and Healing Memorials through Natural Burial

       

 



 







FINAL DESIGN

The proposed Grace Church Natural Burial Land integrates mourning and symbolism into the wild beauty of nature,finding meaning in life, connection, and time. A chapel oriented towards the burial fields and the rising sun welcomes groups gathering for services, while a quiet memorial tucked close to the woods promises a moment of quiet, intamacy, and peace. Life teems on the site, with plantings for wildlife habitat throughout.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND PRINCIPLES

The engagement meeting with stakeholders was examined through the lens of hermeneutic phenomenology. This process aims to reach the essence of a particular experience: in this case, a person’s experience of the landscape when dealing with loss. By utilizing the hermeneutic circle, five themes were eventually determined which would guide the design proccess.

PROGRAM DIAGRAM

1.ADA Parking

2.Main Entrance

3.Sunrise Chapel

4.Community Plaza and Garden

FLORIOGRAPHY: “Communication through the use of flowers, with different types of flowers having particular symbolic meanings”.

SITE DESIGN: SUNRISE CHAPEL AND GARDENS

The chapel is a location where the community will gather for services, prayer, and mourning. In the midst of turmoil and loss, the abundance of flowers, colors, fragrances, and plant life which envelops the chapel may provide some joy or relief from grief. The plants chosen are native species, with the intent that they would require less intensive management and care. At the same time, the ability to tend to and help grow the landscape can connect the bereaved more closely to the land where their loved ones are interred. In particular, gathering bouquets in the meadow allows people to leave a living offering at graves, or to offer to fellow mourners. The beauty of the bouquet and its eventual decay provide mourners with an object of focus for reflection.

5. Orchard

6. Bouquet Meadow

7. Woodland Path

8. To Natural Burial Fields

YARROW: good health

BLACK-EYED SUSAN: encouragement

POPPY: restful sleep, condolence

ASTER: patience, elegance

SITE DESIGN: INFINITY MEMORIAL

The Infinity Memorial allows for focused memorialization beyond the burial fields and holds several spaces for reflection. The shape is inspired through both universal and Christian symbology for time and eternity. While this is a space to remember lost loved ones or work through deep grief, there is also inspiration to celebrate what is eternal and lasting in life, love, and faith.









SITE DESIGN:SUNRISE CHAPEL AND ORCHARD

The Chapel borrows from from one of the most powerful symbols and design frameworks in human history: the sun and its cycle. Choosing to direct the chapel towards the sunrise, so that those entering see it rise behind the cross, is powerful imagery for the coming of light, life, and warmth to banish the darkness of the night. The chapel is specifically oriented between the winter solstice sunrise and the spring equinox sunrise, favoring the time of year where days are coldest and shortest and the sunrise is more desperately wanted and needed. While the chapel is a place of gathering and mourning, the native fruit orchard around it represents a garden of renewal, sustenance, and celebration of life.

Wild Cherry -Prunus serotina

American Plum -Prunus americana

Service Berry -Amelanchier arborea

“It was said that when the serviceberry bloomed, it was a sign the ground had thawed enough for graves to be dug to the proper depth or conditions had improved enough for circuit preachers to travel” (nps.gov)

RabbiteyeBlueberry -Vaccinium virgatum

Daffodil –Narcissus spp.

“It was said that when the serviceberry bloomed, it was a sign the ground had thawed enough for graves to be dug to the proper depth or conditions had improved enough for circuit preachers to travel” (nps.gov)

INTERNSHIP

J.K. TILLER AND ASSOCIATES

LOCATION: BLUFFTON, SOUTH CAROLINA

TERM: SUMMER 2022, SUMMER 2023

My experience in my internship has given me a chance to grow and sharpen my skills in a professional setting. From rendered plans to construction details, understanding design from conceptualization to implementation has given me fresh perspective on my own work. I enjoy every step of this creative process, from the intricacies of AutoCAD details to the compilation of final rendered documents. While I will always have more to learn, my interning experience has lent me greater confidence in my work and professional career.

DESIGN DETAILS

One project which I contributed work to over both internship periods was a residential pool design. Most previously, I built AutoCAD sections elevations for stairs which led up both sides of the poolhouse. These details accounted for grading, material dimensions, railings, and other hardscape details. Even the curve of the brick wall and detailing was captured in the drawing.

DESIGN DETAILS

A major project which I worked on in Summer 2023 was the Paris Avenue Streetscape for Port Royal, South Carolina. The entire plan spanned the length of the small coastal towns main street. The project called for the narrowing of the existing street to allow for greater pedestrian access and comfort on newly added and widened sidewalks. It was also a requirement to retain an equal number of parking spaces along the street, as well as add accessible parking and crosswalks throughout.

The entire design also included the placement of street trees, tree grates, light posts, and furniture such as benches and bike racks. Golf parking was added along side streets, and entrances to buildings were payed particular attention.

The entire plan was drafted in AutoCAD and digitally rendered. Collections of street furnishings and plant options were added these rendered plans and presented to the community at an engagement meeting. I participated to assist in answering questions, directing community members, and listening to input.

SELECTED WORKS

LUMEON, ANALYSIS, AXONS, AND ART

TERM: FALL 2018-FALL 2023

This selection of works showcases my grasp on various styles of graphic representation and design, as well as personal strengths and interests. Through various studios and in personal projects, I have only seen my love for making art grow over the years. Being able to marry the styles and techniques I explore with my studio projects is especially rewarding. Each semester sees me trying new rendering styles, analysis graphics, presentation board styles, color palettes, and more.

LUMEON

Since using this 3D rendering program for a studio in Fall 2019, I have retained my learning of how to use this program. While it is not my preferred rendering style for most recent studio projects, I have led regular sessions to teach underclassmen how to use the program for their projects.

ANALYSIS AND MAPPING

Regional, local, and site analysis is always an integral part of my design process. Using everything from site visits, topic research, GIS mapping, and satellite map analysis, I work to create accurate and valuable maps. With every studio, I enjoy exploring new color palettes, symbols, programs, and graphic communication styles.





 



 







  

  

AXONOMETRIC AND 3D RENDERS

Ever since learning how to hand-draw axonometrics in undergraduate school, I have had an easy understanding of dimension and 3D drawing techniques. Even during the conceptual stages of a project, I will sketch in 3D to understand spaces and scale. I have extended this understanding to axonometric masterplans, analysis maps, and site plans.

From handrawings to autoCAD to Photoshop, I am able to conceptualize, construct, and render 3D graphics. This applies to both accurate models and conceptual images.

GRAPHIC DESIGN AND ART

While it is seldom the focus of any class, I enjoy applying myself to graphic design when given the chance. This applies to board headers (top left) and logos (bottom left). The header graphics were created using collages of imagery from project sites. The logos were created for CUASLA Earth Day (2023) and ASLA Southeast Regional Conference (2019).

In personal art, I enjoy sketching animals and creatures, because of the beaturiful and primal energy of nature. I have also begun to branch into digital painting.