Gareth Doherty of Harvard University to speak at CED on Burle Marx

On Wednesday December 2nd, Gareth Doherty, Harvard University Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture, will speak on his latest book, Roberto Burle Marx Lectures: Landscape as Art and Urbanism. Roberto Burle Marx was a renowned Brazilian landscape architect who gained worldwide recognition for his park and garden designs.

Following Gareth’s presentation, former CED Dean Darrel Morrison and Professor Emeritus Ian Firth will join as discussants for a panel Q&A. “Burle Marx spoke at UGA in the 1970s, and it is one of the lectures included in Gareth’s book. Panelist discussants Darrel Morrison and Ian Firth each had a strong relationship to Burle Marx’s work, and they each visited his projects in Brazil,” says Stephen Ramos, CED Associate Professor and moderator for the Burle Marx panel.

Not only was Marx an internationally-celebrated landscape architect, he was also a painter, and an ecologist. He was one of the first to bring attention to conservation needs for the Brazilian rainforests. The natural world was not exclusively confined to the outdoors in his life either. He had a large collection of plants in his home including more than 500 philodendrons and has had over 50 plants named after him.

With Dougherty’s research and teaching focus on the relationship between landscape architecture and anthropology, Burle Marx was a natural choice for his book. “Gareth’s book offers the opportunity not only to appreciate Burle Marx’s words and his work, but it also helps us at the CED to think about our tradition of inter-generational design inspiration. Having just celebrated our 50th anniversary, the lecture and panel discussion seem entirely appropriate as a grand finale for the celebrations,” said Ramos.

To learn more about Doherty, please visit his webpage, and his book can be found at Lars Müller Publishers and is available for purchase.