Parks and Public Spaces

Are public parks needed and how do they help society?

I believe that having somewhere you can go in the hustle and bustle of life is very important; if even for a few minutes walking on the way to your destination or for longer during a lunch break or in your free time. As far cities are concerned, in order for this to work I think that they have to be in a convenient location and work around if not with peoples working lives; there is no point in having one good place if you can only spend enough time there to catch your breath before having to get back to work. There is something about being able to spend some time surrounded by nature that allows you to relax, and forget about any worries that may be concerning you and just simply take in the surroundings; or converse with other people, whether friends or complete strangers in an environment that is visually and mentaly secluded from the idea of work, even if it is physically a road away from that exact place.

Parks enable people on all walks of life a place to come and socialise and interact with one another and can create a place that errodes any issues with racial, religious or social differences.
An example of this was during the summer months in Hyde Park where a complete mixture of people were out enjoying the sun. This particular area was packed with people sitting on the lawns having lunch, queing to get ice creams, pedaling in water boats, walking their dogs, cycling, jogging, and even a large crowd of people watching a group of  roller skaters skating to the rhythm of a guy who set up his decks and speakers. On a biological view, the trees help to remove pollutants from the air, thus creating a cleaner environment to inhabit.

Making Space

How technology can help to free up usable space in urban areas:

http://www.woehr.de/en/projekte/budapest_m730/index.htm

Inspiration through visits

One of the things I like doing is travelling; one reason is for a good holiday, the other is to experience different countries cultures, history and views on life. In particular I like to see the architectural styles of the areas and the design of the building and surrounding areas and the work that has gone into creating them; especially looking at old ruins and imagining what life once was like. I find it interesting how nature manages to reclaim these man made objects if left alone; an example of this that I would like to visit is Ta Phrom/Angkor Wat in Cambodia. Rapa Nui, Chile (Easter Island) is also interesting, it consists of large rock heads; the tale is that the people hundreds of years ago over exploited the area by cutting down most of the trees in order to build these increasingly large statues as a sign of power as well as making agricultural land to feed the over populated island, that it had a knock on effect on the wildlife, as well as the islands native palm trees; now extinct and the people diminished. The loss of trees meant new boats could not be made to fish with as well as the island eroding into the sea. We have not come far from this today, cutting down rain-forests and using up other natural resources, which is why I think sustainability is an important issue.


Some places I have visited that inspired me are Alhambra, with the use of water and fountains relying on natural pressure to work,

Yosemite, Kirstenbosch, Lisbon, Wakehurst place, Gibberd Garden, Sheffield Park, Central Park and most recently, The High Line; which makes use of over a mile of disused elevated freight railway running through New York.

Past, Present and Future

The A-levels I took were Biology, Business Studies and Design Technology; although completely different subjects, they all influenced my interest in Landscape Architecture.
I was and still am intrigued by the workings of nature, - from animal to plant cells and how they all interact to create different organisms and how both animals and plants rely on each other to survive. This, I guess is what partially got me interested in the use of plants.
I had studied Design Technology for seven years and woodwork for 14 years; the last two of which, involved finding clients and designing a product to full fill their design brief; having done this, we then needed to create a prototype model of our product (mostly using wood). I have always preferred doing practical work which is why I chose to do DT, and being able to work with a renewable and versatile material like wood, from making a rickety pine shoe rack in primary school, to a mahogany display cabinet in year 13. This too added to my interest in design.
As far as Business Studies goes, that got me thinking about how businesses work and some of the factors you need to take into consideration in running one, which one day I would like to have an attempt at doing. The gap in the middle is now... studying Landscape Architecture.