A panel discussion on June 28th will look at the relevance of the Olmsted Design Principles today. Frederick Law Olmsted, known as the father of landscape architecture in America, created many of the country’s most prominent parks and campuses throughout the 1800s. He was responsible for designing Central Park in New York City, the grounds around the US Capitol, the country’s first state park next to Niagara Falls, and thousands of other projects. When he retired, his sons took over as leaders in landscape architecture and city planning with the Olmsted Brothers Landscape Architects firm.
In Maryland, the senior Olmsted designed the suburb of Sudbrook Park and the four Mount Vernon Place parks. His sons’ firm designed the campus of Johns Hopkins University and residential communities like Roland Park and Guilford, and worked on improvements to Druid Hill Park and Patterson Park.
The Friends of Maryland’s Olmsted Parks & Landscapes (FMOPL) is hosting Thursday’s “open space forum” to discuss the pertinence of the Olmsted legacy to modern sustainability needs. That nonprofit group is dedicated to preserving the Olmsted parks and landscapes in Maryland, and reviving the Olmsted vision, according to its mission statement online. The Olmsted Design Principles, laid out here on a website for the Guilford community, can be broken down into “the seven S’s”: scenery, suitability, style, subordination, separation, sanitation and service.
The panel at this week’s event will “discuss current open space needs according to Olmsted Design Principles and strategies for protecting parks and open spaces as a vital part of our communities,” according to an advertisement. Howard Aylseworth of FMOPL is moderating the panel, which will feature David Benn of Cho Benn Holback + Associates, urban designer Mark Cameron of Morgan State University, Jackie Carerra of the Parks & People Foundation, Barbara Hopkins of NeighborSpace of Baltimore County, and Del. Mary Washington of Baltimore’s Sustainability Mission.
This free event takes place:
Thursday, June 28th
7pm
Johns Hopkins at Eastern, 1101 East 33rd St. 21218
