Review of Practice Approaches

From the following practice, I've considered their manifestos and decided which out of the four practices, I'd like to work for and why. See comments in red for my thoughts. 

EXTRACTS:

Practice ONE

We are Landscape Architects and the roots of the practice are founded in close

collaboration with the arts, which has led to us fulfilling an Urban Curatorial role. This

process is flexible and collaborative, allowing us to bring in artists and other facilitators to

work with space and community as the project unfolds. These collaborations feed into a

design process stimulating it with real public opinion, artistic input and one to one tests of

ideas and space; the results are innovative urban interventions that truly address the

complex contextual challenges of a place.

Our work also draws on some common themes: Building capacity for change in communities

through innovative public engagement and inclusion in the design process; The shift from

the car to bike and the role of the bicycle in the city as a stimulator for social and physical

change; An approach to play that explores urban playfulness in its widest sense - for all ages

and in all urban locations; A preoccupation with history, memory and past identity of places;

Forest or “Witness” trees in the City which root individuals in community, place, and mark

the passing of time; the role and need for water in urban landscapes.

Long term research and commitment to developing these ‘common themes’ within the

practice support our goal to create meaningful and appropriate intervention that are valued

by clients and communities. These themes are also often common to the creation of more

sustainable, distinctive, characterful and liveable urban environments. As we have worked

and developed these themes across projects of differing scale we have come to understand

them in depth. The practice is currently collating our research into a series of reports, to

inspire, inform and to promote their value within the Urban Realm.

Comment: Extensive in their description of what they value in landscape design, taking a more artistic approach, underpinned with an emphasis on communities and public engagement. I like the focus being on the urban public realm and placemaking as this topic interests me greatly. However, I do feel like this practice wanted to cover all bases by showing their versatility, so there is a lack of specialism, which could suggest a larger-sized practice with a wide range of projects and employees. 

"Urban Curatorial Role" - what does this mean exactly? Potentially that they have a substantial role in planning as well as design.

"The shift from the car to bike and the role of the bicycle in the city as a stimulator for social and physical change" - indicates their pragmatism surrounding the future sustainability of cities with a revolution in transport policies.

Would I work here? - YES especially on urban public realm projects

Practice TWO

Creating places for people is embedded in our approach to design, enabling us to develop a

vision inherent to a place. We believe people's quality of life and the quality of their build

environment are intrinsically linked. We seek to re-imagine public spaces that integrate with

their surroundings and are the heart of local communities, towns and cities, thereby

creating the setting for public life to play out.

We are passionate about both design and integration, working closely in a studio

environment to create places that are unique, memorable and long lasting. We firmly

believe in working as part of a collaborative process through which we can shape the public

realm to create lively environments that contribute to people's health, happiness and

wellbeing.

Comment: This concise description is effective in conveying its message of people-led design with an attractive "studio environment" which is appealing to me as I believe in the collaborative process in achieving quality designs. With less detail in this summary, it isn't clear exactly what scale of projects they work on but one can assume their strong ethics inform their designs, to benefit local communities. 

Would I work here? - YES but I'd like to research more about their completed projects

Practice THREE

UP is a landscape and architecture practice

UP exists to make places better

UP understand environment as a precious resource

UP makes spaces that society needs

UP works with people and communities

UP offers a collective of expertise

UP believes in Gesamtkunstwerk

UP elevates nature, neighbourhoods and neural pathways

UP loves overlooked and neglected places

UP designs landscapes that appreciate over time

Comment: A different approach to demonstrating this practice's manifesto is punchy and persuasive. I had to research what 'Gesamtkunstwerk' means, ('total work of art' - and can also refer to aesthetics) and so wasn't entirely sure how it would translate into their design work. I am intrigued by the fact they're an architecture firm as well as landscape so I would hope they work in collaboration on projects to achieve harmony between the two. 

Would I work here? - YES as I feel like they've understood the essence of their design approach succinctly

Practice FOUR

We apply global experiences and expertise at a local level, tailoring designs to specific and

contextual conditions and cultural requirements. We work in a very collaborative

environment and are very intent on ensuring our work is people-centric, functional,

connected and achieves key sustainable principles in its resolution. We are bold but

considered in our work, investing time and resources to find the right design solution to

solve our clients’ challenges.

Comment: Similar to practice TWO but I feel this last one is well-worded with key phrases that spark the imagination. Again, its conciseness doesn't pertain much detail to their scope of work but I like their commitment to collaboration to achieve "people-centric, functional, and connected" spaces. 

Would I work here? - YES but I'd like to know more about their work