Combining concepts

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Desert Rose in Sharjah.

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Qatar Science and Technology Park.

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Desert Rose.

What expansion plans does Woods Bagot have concerning its landscape staff?

We are actively recruiting for Abu Dhabi and Dubai and current projects that we have coming on stream in Bahrain. We certainly intend to expand, not just here in the GCC, but also internationally.

Probably Asia is the next area where we're looking to expand the landscape team. I would envisage that we will probably grow to about 25 people in the next six months in landscape architecture across the GCC region.

What advantages are there in being part of a multi-disciplinary firm as opposed to a specialist landscape firm when working on projects?

There are huge advantages in terms of total design output. One of our major considerations is the complete public realm and for us to achieve a high quality result with that there needs to be an integration of the architecture, the landscape, and the urban design.

As part of a multi-disciplinary team working under the one roof, we can work closely with the project masterplanners and architects to help establish the form and scale of the landscape spaces before we may otherwise have an opportunity to get involved in the project.

The Badrah Community is a really good example of this. We worked closely with the rest of the design team to determine the appropriate sizes for development blocks to accommodate large central courtyard spaces within the building plots, which can be used to provide a variety of external uses, and ensure connection between the internal building space and the landscape.

What value does the landscape have in the Middle East?

Something we've noticed with a lot of our Emirati clients in particular is that they value lush green landscapes very highly. It is rather like the creation of an oasis where the landscape provides a relief from the harshness of the predominant natural landscape and can be a place of refuge, especially in the extreme summer season.

Another aspect of landscape value comes from the traditional Arabic courtyards as a form of refuge where water is used for cooling effects and shade is created from both buildings and lush planting.

The ability to create much larger landscapes because of increased water availability and landscape technologies has in turn created an expectation to provide more of the lushness and greenery that perhaps in the past they've only been able to achieve in courtyard spaces or in restricted areas.

You mentioned that you are doing some work in Spain. What differences are there in creating a landscape in Spain versus in the GCC?

Climate is the obvious one. The location we've got in Spain is a fairly cool temperate area, snow on the ground in winter so the plant species we're using there are totally different to the ones we would use here.

Sustainability is very important in all of our projects and we always look at ways of managing the water requirements for landscape. In Spain, we have the opportunity to develop landscapes without irrigation whereas here we are looking to develop landscapes that are irrigated but that through careful selection of plant species and use of new technologies minimise the amount of water required.

What are the main challenges for a landscape architect working in the Middle East?

With our approach to the public realm, it is actually dealing with the summer climate and encouraging people to use outdoor spaces during this time. We realise that outdoor temperatures will get to uncomfortable levels no matter what, but our goal is to at least extend the time span a space is comfortable for use.

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