Landscaping for
modern design needs
WORDS Stephanie StefanovicFrom the Gardens of Versailles to the common Australian
backyard, landscaping has always played an important role
in society. However, with the increasing densification of our
cities, some believe these important spaces are being lost.
In some cases this may be true, with green
spaces under attack in favour of high-rise
developments and other more “financially
viable” prospects. In reality, while this is
happening, there is also a growing movement
to green our cities and many of our new high-
rise towers include landscape elements such
as a rooftop gardens or green walls.
This is also the case for education and care,
where facilities are increasingly being housed
in high-rise towers. Research shows that in
both education and care facilities access to
outdoor green spaces is crucial, improving
mood, cognitive function and overall physical
and mental health. While there is nothing
like walking straight outside into nature, the
benefits of landscaping can still be accessed
in a vertical application – it just takes more
creativity from the designer.
The relationship between children and nature
is extremely important, says Paul Gardiner,
director of Gardiner Architects.“Young children, particularly preschool age,
are really eager to learn, to experience, to
experiment. The exposure to nature through
landscaping is extremely valuable in their
quest to understand the world.
“As architects, we are called upon to design
buildings and outdoor spaces for children
constrained by all the boring adult issues, like
development cost, town planning restrictions
and building issues. But we never lose sight of
the child’s experience.”
A view of the outdoors, seeing the sky, being
faced with a climbing challenge and being able
to get dirty are just some of the important things
for children, according to Gardiner.
“In terms of successful landscaped space,
children like to be challenged, so they will climb
over something rather than go around like an
adult does,” he says.
“They like hiding, getting up high and feeling
like they are in the highest treehouse in the
jungle, their special place. Outdoor play spacesare best [when they are] non-prescriptive.
An object does not need to be overdesigned,
as children will use their imagination to invent
whether they are flying a plane, on the back of a
dragon, or just sitting on a log.”
It is still possible to incorporate all the
characteristics of a good space in a high-
rise tower – light and sun, access to green
space and indoor-outdoor spaces – it is just
more challenging.
“The difficulty is that you might not be
able to run straight outside like a school on
the ground, so access is more controlled, like
visiting the local sports oval or basketball
court,” says Gardiner.
“The advantage is the sharing of facilities
between school and communities and the urban
placemaking that might ensue.
“We have done designs for several early
learning centres in multi-storey office buildings
and have come to the realisation that what
is “indoor” and what is “outdoor” is reallyarchitecture & deSign /PRActicAL/ jul-Sep 201980ADQ3_080_082_Outdoor_V2.indd 80 26/7/19 5:19 pm