Landscape Infrastructure: Case Studies by SWA

Infrastructure is currently a much discussed notion in the field of landscape architecture. It regards the entire urban and rural space as a network that calls for an integrated planning approach. Natural and man-made infrastructures are viewed as forming a single, overarching whole. The book examines this new and ecologically sustainable approach with essays by well-known experts in the field. It also documents thirteen international examples. The Infrastructure Research Initiative is part of the SWA Group, which was founded in 1957 by Peter Walker and Hideo Sasaki and has since developed into one of the largest and most important landscape planning agencies in the United States. Among the projects of the firm that have captured international attention are the technologically innovative roof domes for Renzo Piano's California Academy of Science in San Francisco ( 2008 ), which were planted with indigenous flora.