As the San Francisco Flower and Garden Show was wrapped up last weekend, and the students are working towards packing up their “Urban Habitat”, students Emanuel Gonzales and instructor Yasmine Farazian, who coordinated the student group, were invited to the San Francisco Flower & Garden Show ‘Gala’, where they spent an evening celebrating their accomplishments (GOLD MEDAL!) with their family and friends.

Photos of the Gala, as well as wonderful pictures of “Urban Habitat”, taken by Yasmine, below!

Can’t wait for next years show!

As the San Francisco Flower & Garden Show is well underway, our students were granted the honorary GOLD MEDAL for their “Urban Habitat” Landscape Creation.

We are so proud of our students for representing the Academy in such a high regard, and we hope to see you all at the show this weekend!

 Gold Medal Winners!!!!

SAN FRANCISCO FLOWER AND GARDEN SHOW

March 21-25

San Mateo Event Center

Our first year (actually first semester!) undergraduate students, under the guidance of School of Landscape Architecture instructor Yasmine Farazian, will be exhibiting a design at the San Francisco Flower and Garden Show, March 21- 25.

The design is the work of freshman student Emanuel Gonzales and is based on the concept of “Urban Habitat”.  The focus of this garden is on the re-use and re-purposing of materials to create an urban oasis. Emanuel is leading the team of students from a variety of disciplines in the construction and installation of this garden.

Under his direction, students have successfully secured a variety of materials and constructed a full scale mock-up in the 601 Brannan Street parking lot over the March 9 – 11 weekend. Now that they are confident in their design, they have begun installing the design at the San Mateo Event Center, in preparation for the big show!

Here are some recent photos of their progress:

The debris bins and dumpsters are moved into position. Thank you to Recology!

Below, the plants have just arrived from Pacific Nurseries.

Urban Habitat is taking shape!

 We are beyond proud of our students, and we hope to see you all there!

For more information on the upcoming San Francisco Flower and Garden Show, click HERE.

Paul Kephart

will be

giving

a

guest lecture:

“INTEGRATED DESIGN”

March 8 at 7pm

601 Brannan Street

Paul Kephart, the man responsible for the success of the green roof at the Academy of Sciences will be teaching a course entitled “Green Architecture” in the Fall 2012 semester. He is currently also working on an online version.

As Paul Kephart states: “Whether students wish to build a career as an architect or a designer, pursue a profession in digital media, or seek an academic background for construction management, this introductory class will explore and  explain performance-based  integrated design from project conception through construction. Examples, case histories, and project based design applications will be provided. The studio will include course topics related to living roofs, living walls, constructed wetlands, grey water systems, solar applications, ans the integration of living systems with mechanical, plumbing,and energy systems. Participants will be expected to learn and apply design standards and guidelines, building codes and regulations, materials and methods, performance criteria, and measuring and monitoring of living systems on a studio project.”

ACADEMY OF SCIENCES ROOFTOP

RANA CREEK DESIGN

For more information on Paul Kephart and Rana Creek Design, click HERE.

See you all tomorrow!

Pastoral Capitalism

March 7, 2012 – 12:30 pm

According to Spur.com,  ”…Louise Mozingo, professor of landscape architecture and environmental planning and director of the Center for Resource Efficient Communities at UC Berkeley…will present material from her new book, Pastoral Capitalism: A History of Suburban Corporate Landscapes”.

654 Mission Street,
San Francisco, CA 94105-4015

For more information on Louise Mozingo, and the above event, click HERE.

57 degrees – An Exhibition

FEATURING SCHOOL OF LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE  FACULTY MEMBER…MARY SWANSON!

Exhibition Dates
February 2 – April 6, 2012

Thoreau Gallery
Gallery Hours: M-F, 9AM-5PM

Thoreau Center for Sustainability
The Presidio of San Francisco
1014 Torney Avenue (At Lincoln Boulevard), Building 106

Click HERE for more information.

According to WorldLandscapeArchitecture.com, New York City celebrated Valentine’s Day, by adding an impressive interactive heart installation to Times Square. Not only is this massive heart glowing and heart-warming at a distance, but it actually utilized the flow of people, air, and touch to increase the “glow factor” of the design. (WorldLandscapeArchitecture.com, 2.14.12).

For more photos and information regarding BIG ♥ NYC and the above installation, click HERE.

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY, EVERYONE!

SAN FRANCISCO FLOWER AND GARDEN SHOW

March 21-25

San Mateo Event Center

Our first year (actually first semester!) undergraduate students, under the guidance of School of Landscape Architecture instructor Yasmine Farazian, will be exhibiting a design at the San Francisco Flower and Garden Show, March 21- 25.

The design is the work of freshman student Emanuel Gonzales and is based on the concept of “Urban Habitat”. Emanuel is leading the team of students from a variety of disciplines in the construction and installation of this garden. Under his direction, students are currently involved in securing materials and will be constructing a full scale mock-up in the 601 Brannan Street parking lot over the March 9 – 11 weekend.

Students in Paul Colardo’s class from the School of Multimedia Communications, will be documenting the entire process…from stone selection, to final installation, to reactions from the visitors at the show.

We are also excited to announce that the San Francisco Flower and Garden Show Newsletter featured Emanuel’s design in their newsletter!

“Urban Habitat”, Emanuel Gonzales

For more information on the San Francisco Flower and Garden Show, and our feature in their newsletter, click HERE.

School of Landscape Architecture

COMMUNITY SERVICE PROJECT:

The Francisco Reservoir

Thanks to Rebecca Delgado Rottman, Vice President of Community and Government Relations here at the Academy of Art University,  students in the first year MFA studio will be embarking on a very exciting community service project later this semester. The Francisco Reservoir is located at the corner of Bay and Hyde Street. The reservoir has not been used in decades and although the site has the potential of becoming one of the most beautiful open spaces in the entire city, it has lain dormant for over 60 years.

Students in Toni Bava’s studio have been asked by a consortium of four neighborhood groups to come up with some visions for this long underutilized space. They hope to present the selected design(s) to  the surrounding communities in order to garner further support before approaching City Hall with their proposals. Instructor Antonia Bava will be guiding our students through this process which has the potential of adding another beautiful public open space to the City’s fabric.

For more information on the history of the San Francisco Reservoir, click HERE.