European Landscape Architecture
This is an important new book about landscape con-
struction and good detailed design. It is not a book
of standard details in landscape architecture, nor
does it give the reader step-by-step instructions;
instead it highlights how important it is to consider
detail in the creative process, showing that good
practice in detailing is as integral to successful
design as an exciting concept or striking site plan.
The book features case studies of recent land-
scape architectural projects in nine European coun-
tries, including the Peace Garden in Sheffield, the
Harbour Park in Copenhagen, a motorway service
station in France, a guest house garden in Hungary,
a cemetery in Munich and the new Botanic Gardens
in Barcelona. Each project has been chosen for its
exemplary good practice in construction detailing
and is demonstrative of how a strong overall con-
cept can be expressed through well-designed detail
to create convincing design.
European Landscape Architecture draws together
a team of leading professionals and academics in
the field of landscape architecture. The case stud-
ies are well-illustrated with photographs and many
original construction drawings running alongside
the text. This will be a valuable source book for
students and practitioners alike, as well as being
of interest to researchers with an interest in the
process of design.
Jens Balsby Nielsen was Associate Professor at the
University of Copenhagen from 1998–2005 where
his main subjects were landscape planning, manage-
ment, and landscape architectural detailing and con-
struction. In 2005 he became a landscape advisor in
the Danish Palaces and Properties Agency.
Torben Dam has been an Associate Professor at the
University of Copenhagen since 1993. Torben is the
author of books about garden design, quality stand-
ards and hard surfaces in landscape architecture. His
main areas of teaching and research are in detailing
and construction in landscape architecture.
Ian Thompson is Reader in Landscape Architecture
at Newcastle University. A chartered landscape
architect and town-planner, he spent thirteen years
in practice before joining the teaching staff in the
School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape in
- He is editor of the international peer-reviewed
journal Landscape Research and the author of
several books including Ecology, Community and
Delight (Spon Press, 1999) which won a Landscape
Institute Award in 2001 and The Sun King’s Garden
(Bloomsbury, 2006), a narrative history of the crea-
tion of the gardens of Versailles.
