October 5, 2016 – On Thursday, October 6, Seattle Parks and Recreation is hosting a public meeting to discuss the design of Smith Cove Park. GGN is leading the planning and design effort with Olson Kundig for this waterfront park in Seattle, WA. Smith Cove Park is located just west of Pier 91, at the foot of Magnolia Hill on Elliott Bay.

GGN is currently designing a vision plan for the 9.5 acre waterfront property. Included in the project’s first phase will be improvements to an existing sports field. GGN’s vision expands upon the traditional approach to a sports field, incorporating a natural turf, rectangular space into a larger “Field Oval” with a soft, tree-lined edge. The large oval lawn, which will be used for picnicking, pick-up games, community events, and youth soccer games, has a curvilinear geometry that draws from the history of the site as a tidal flat. Based on its unique siting, the “Field Oval” is oriented towards the water to frame views of Mt. Rainier and downtown Seattle. Access to the water’s edge will be enhanced, so that park visitors can stroll along the beach and launch a kayak into Elliott Bay.

Through the public meeting, Seattle Parks and Recreation will work with the GGN design team to incorporate community insights regarding how specific program elements are prioritized within the first phase of the project’s budget. “We’re thrilled to be working with Parks and the community to design a Seattle waterfront park on such a beautiful and historically rich site,” said Tess Schiavone, Principal. 

GGN is teaming with the exceptional thinkers at Olson Kundig, who have contributed research and analysis into the site’s connection to surrounding neighborhoods and communities, in order to evaluate programming ideas that will activate the park. The design effort is also strengthened by the contributions of Jeffrey L. Bruce & Company, Hart Crowser, Magnusson Klemencic Associates, DCW Cost Management, Niteo, and Rushing. With Seattle Parks and Recreation’s leadership, the design team looks forward to building upon the existing momentum and enthusiasm of neighborhood groups, like the Friends of Smith Cove Park, in defining what the park can be.

September 13, 2016 – The Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture will open to the public September 24 as a primary exhibition space for African American history and culture, as well as a centerpiece venue for ceremonies and performances.

GGN’s landscape design integrates the museum into the larger composition of the National Mall and Washington Monument grounds, thereby creating a link to a broader American story and establishing the site as an integral component of the museum experience.

"From a landscape design perspective, what makes this museum unique is that it holds a position of both terminus and junction. It is the last museum on the National Mall, and it is also where the National Mall, Washington Monument, and White House grounds meet," said Kathryn Gustafson, Founding Principal. "Conceptually, the landscape design is symbolic of the museum's mission."

Live Oaks, Magnolias, and American Beeches are part of a diverse planting palette chosen and composed to reinforce broad themes of the museum: resiliency, spirituality, hope, and optimism. The site is designed to encourage visitors to extend the museum experience outside, and to linger and reflect on the important narratives being told within.

GGN worked with the architectural team of Freelon Adjaye Bond/SmithGroupJJR from the beginning of the project as part of the competition team. In the role of landscape architect, GGN created the site master plan, envisioned the landscape design, and oversaw landscape construction.

“The site design is really a small part of a much larger composition that has been evolving over the past 200 years. It is humbling to have had a hand in the continued evolution of this significant national space,” said Rodrigo Abela, Principal.

Photo credit: Andrew Moore

August 24, 2016 - The Lurie Garden has invited the public to attend a free panel discussion on Wednesday, August 31 from 6:00-8:00pm at Pritzker Stage at Millennium Park. "Lurie Garden is famous for its design, and it continues to inspire people all over the world. We have assembled a first-of its-kind discussion panel with three people who conceptualized, designed and planted Lurie Garden: Piet Ouldolf of Hummelo, the Netherlands, Shannon Nichol of Gustafson Guthrie Nichol, Roy Diblik of Northwind Perennial Farms and Laura Ekasetya, Lurie Garden Head Horticulturist." The discussion will be moderated by Dr. Scott Stewart, Acting Executive Director of the Millennium Park Foundation and Director of the Lurie Garden. A public Q & A session will be included.

Space is limited. To make a reservation, please visit the Lurie Garden website.

August 21, 2016 – Three talented individuals have joined the staff of GGN.

Hannah Vondrak joins GGN as a Designer. Hannah’s professional experience includes construction documentation, construction administration, and planting designs for various project types including streetscapes, campuses, and housing across the country.

Selina Yu-Han Chiu joins GGN as a Designer. Selina brings a global perspective having worked on projects in China, Colombia, and Tennessee, at design firms in Rotterdam, New York, Hong Kong, and Chicago. 

Chrystie Cottier joins GGN as an Administrator. Chrystie’s professional experience includes interior design, graphic design, visual merchandising, fashion styling, and jewelry design.

July 22, 2016 - Three talented individuals are currently participating in GGN’s internship program as Design Interns – Tiffany Megumi Gerdes, Rikerrious Geter, and Ernest Haines. Tiffany received a Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art and Art History from Wesleyan University. She is currently pursuing a Master of Landscape Architecture at the University of Pennsylvania. Rikerrious is a LEED Green Associate and recent graduate of the University of Georgia College of Environment and Design. Ernest is working on his Master of Landscape Architecture at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, where he is planning to pursue a concurrent degree in Master of Design with a concentration in Urbanism, Landscape, and Ecology.

GGN’s rolling internships are open to landscape architecture and architecture students or recent graduates from the United States and abroad. The GGN internship program offers exposure to many facets of contemporary landscape architectural practice.

July 8, 2016 - Today Long Beach City officials broke ground for the new 22-acre Civic Center. The new mixed-use district includes a new City Hall, Port Headquarters and Main Library, along with a re-activated Lincoln Park and new residential, retail and hotel commercial development.

“We are so pleased to be a part of the revitalization of Long Beach’s downtown civic core and look forward to seeing the collective vision of the public and project team realized,” said Jennifer Guthrie, GGN founding principal.

GGN’s landscape design is strategically planned to be an inviting and welcoming civic place for a broad demographic of users, morning through night. Thoughtful attention is placed on the integration of active program elements that will draw these users, such as a children’s play area, dog park, musician’s corner, flexible lawn spaces, and public seating. A robust palette of water-wise plants and adapted species will provide educational value to visitors.

Civic design moves include restoring Long Beach’s historic streetgrid, linking pedestrian spaces through plazas and promenades, opening up site lines to maximize signature views, and expanding the city’s existing bike system.

This project is targeting New Development LEED Gold Certification.

The Civic Center is being developed under an innovative public-private partnership with Plenary-Edgemoor Civic Partners and the City of Long Beach.

June 11, 2016 – On June 10 and 11, over 700 people attended the Landscape Architecture Foundation "Summit on Landscape Architecture and the Future" at the University of Pennsylvania. The Summit was called to "critically reflect on what landscape architecture has achieved over the last 50 years and present bold ideas for what it should achieve in the future.” Jennifer Guthrie, President-Elect of the Landscape Architecture Foundation, worked with the LAF Board and LAF Staff to plan this successful event.

Over the course of the two days, 70 established and emerging leaders presented their “Declarations” and engaged in lively debate about realizing landscape architecture’s potential and effecting real world change. Kathryn Gustafson was one of these distinguished speakers, and she spoke about the importance of resiliency and its relationship to beauty and the human spirit.

In addition to Kathryn Gustafson, several members of GGN's team were in attendance at the Summit, including Rodrigo Abela, Grant Stewart, Keith McPeters, Bernie Alonzo, Tess Schiavone, Jill Fortuna, Emily Scott, Michael Benson, Meg Herndon, and Cheryl dos Remedios.

From this Summit, the Landscape Architecture Foundation will redraft a new declaration that will set the course for landscape architecture to make its vital contribution in the 21st century. LAF also plans to produce a landmark publication of the ideas presented at the Summit.

May 27, 2016 - Several talented individuals have joined the staff of landscape architecture firm GGN.

Ashley Ludwig joins GGN as an Associate, following several years practicing landscape architecture in New York. She is a project leader for the India Basin Shoreline Park and the Long Beach Civic Center projects, both located in California.

Katherine Liss joins GGN as an Associate, following seven years practicing landscape architecture in New York. She is leading GGN projects throughout the United States.

Alex McCay joins as a Designer, having received his Masters in Landscape Architecture from Pennsylvania State University last year.

Wolfgang Umana joins as the Administrator of GGN’s Washington, DC workspace, having recently received a degree in Environmental Science and Public Policy from George Mason University.

May 27, 2016 - GGN is pleased to announce the promotion of key team members. Laurel Li was promoted to Designer, and Cheryl dos Remedios was promoted to Marketing & Communications Senior Associate.

May 13, 2016 – Today Rodrigo Abela and Emily Scott provided short mentoring sessions at the High School Design Summit hosted by the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum at the Smithsonian Arts and Industries Building in Washington, DC. Over 200 students participated in this opportunity to meet with designers from a variety of fields, including fashion, architecture, and product design.

GGN was the recipient of the Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt National Design Award for Landscape Architecture in 2011.

May 3, 2016 - Last week Sara Zewde participated in the Rauschenberg Residency on Captiva Island in southwest Florida. “Rising Waters Confab II” brought together the diverse perspectives of landscape architects, artists, scientists, writers and other creative thinkers to address issues of climate change. 

Curated and organized by Buster Simpson and Glenn Weiss, a full list of participants can be found on the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation website.

Photo: Carrell Courtright and the Rauschenberg Residency Rising Waters Confab

April 28, 2016 - This evening, Tess Schiavone presented the design for the City Center Connector streetcar system. The presentation, with Catherine Maggio of the Seattle Department of Transportation, was hosted by AIA Seattle's Urban Design Forum. 

April 22, 2016 - Yesterday evening Rodrigo Abela delivered a Haffenreffer Lecture as part of the Rhode Island School of Design's Spring '16 Architecture + Landscape Architecture series. In his talk, Rodrigo discussed recent projects in Washington, DC - including the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture - and the challenges of working within the monumental spaces of the city.  

April 25, 2016 - Jennifer Guthrie, Landscape Architecture Foundation President-Elect, chaired the jury for the 2016 National Olmsted Scholar Undergraduates, which she describes as “an absolutely impressive group of applicants.” The recipient of the graduate prize is Azzurra Cox, a master’s student at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. The recipient of the undergraduate prize is Casey Howard from the University of Oregon. Congratulations to all of the nominees and finalists.

April 18, 2016 - Jennifer Guthrie served on the jury of the 2016 American Society of Landscape Architects Professional Awards in DC, with jury chair Kona Gray of EDSA. Each year, the ASLA Professional Awards honor the best in landscape architecture from around the globe.

March 14, 2016 - This past fall, GGN oversaw the planting of 382,616 crocus corms at the National Museum of African American History and Culture. The crocuses are now in bloom.

One of the Museum’s themes is “Hope and Optimism,” and the crocus field communicates this uplifting aspect of the Museum’s mission by being the first thing to bloom on the National Mall. Once established, these flowers should bloom annually during Black History Month. In African American culture, the color blue is traditionally a color of protection, so the crocuses’ blue tone symbolizes passing through a threshold into a safe place. Passing into a welcoming place is an important concept in the Museum’s landscape design, and this is why the blooming crocuses are an important part of GGN's landscape story.

March 31, 2016 - Writing for Architizer, Paul Keskeys announced the keynote speakers for Banff Session 2016 today. "Every two years, many of the world’s top architects and design professionals gather to discuss topical issues pertaining to the built environment in the heart of the country’s stunning mountainous landscape. . . .Now in its 60th year, this year’s conference has been given the theme of “Convergence,” intended to reflect the 21st-century merging of disciplines including psychology, environmental science and economics.

"While the destination is characteristically Canadian, architects from all over the world will be in attendance. Keynote speakers include Shannon Nichol of Seattle-based firm Gustafson Guthrie Nichol, Angela Ferguson of Australian studio futurespace [pictured above, far left] and Charles Walker, Director at Zaha Hadid Architects in London [pictured above, middle]. Brigitte Shim and Howard Sutcliffe of Toronto-based firm Shim-Sutcliffe Architects will also give their views, along with J. Robert Hillier of New Jersey practice Studio Hillier."

March 15, 2016 - Shannon Nichol met with students and faculty at the College of Environment + Design at the University of Georgia today. Her visit included a mid-day lecture.