The Garden Design Society of New Zealand are delighted to be bringing Kathryn Gustafson to New Zealand and partnering with the University of Auckland and Victoria University of Wellington, to give lectures in both Auckland and Wellington and masterclasses in Auckland.  

Kathryn Gustafson is an internationally acclaimed landscape architect with over 40 years of distinguished practice. As founding partner of two international offices, Gustafson Porter + Bowman in London and until recently, Gustafson Guthrie Nichol (GGN) in Seattle, Kathryn is renowned for creating distinctive sculptural landscapes which engage at a fundamental human level.

Kathryn brings a unique ability to define a project’s vision and conceives of all material as possessing organic qualities that respond to the seasons, as well as air, heat, sun and wind. Her form-making practice with terrain is all about movement and her work frames the art of landscape as a composition, combining complex elements both visible and otherwise, such as light, sound, and atmosphere. Her working method of modelling in clay enables her to create sensually pleasing and beguilingly simple landforms.

Kathryn’s work from both firms includes the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain in London, Old Market Square in Nottingham, the Cultuurpark Westergasfabriek in Amsterdam, Seattle City Hall Plaza, the Robert and Arlene Kogod Courtyard at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and the landscape design for the National Museum of African American History and Culture, in Washington, DC. Kathryn’s current projects include the Eiffel Tower Site in Paris, a civic project in Senegal, and Taikoo Place in Hong Kong. These designs offer solace from the clamour of daily life as well as providing a unifying structure for the multi-layered requirements of the public realm.

Prior to establishing Gustafson Porter + Bowman in 1997, Kathryn worked in France where she was the lead landscape designer for the headquarters of Shell (1990), Esso (1992) and a model factory for L’Oréal (1993). Other significant works include the award-winning Jardins de l’Imaginaire in Terrasson la Villedieu (1995), which is classed by the French Ministry of culture as one of the most notable gardens in France. Her work at the public plaza in Evry (1991) was one of the first landscape projects worldwide to create a flexible space with water jets.

Kathryn lectures internationally and is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architecture, an honorary Royal Designer for Industry member and a medallist of the French Academy of Architecture. She is the recipient of the Architects’ Journal Jane Drew Prize 1998, the 2001 Chrysler Design Award, the 2008 ASLA Design Medal, the Arnold W. Brunner Memorial Prize for Architecture 2012 and the 8th Obayashi Prize, Japan in 2014. In 2011, Kathryn and her GGN partners received the Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt National Design Award for Landscape Architecture, in 2019 she was given the Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe Award by the IFLA and in 2021 she was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Notable architects collaborated with:

• Renazca, Madrid, Spain – Diller Scofidio + Renfro
• Taikoo Place, Hong Kong – Hugh Dutton Associates / Wong & Ouyang
• Rathbone Place, London, UK – MAKE
• Marina One, Singapore - Ingenhoven Architects
• Museumpark Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands – OMA, MVRDV
• National Botanic Garden of Wales, Llanarthne, Wales – Foster + Partners
• Robert And Arlene Kogod Courtyard at the Smithsonian American Art Museum And National Portrait Gallery (GGN project), Washington DC, USA  – Foster + Partners
• Museum of Art, Boston, USA (GGN project) - Foster + Partners
• Gree Sijing, Shanghai, China – RSHP
• Sydney Bangaroo Waterfront, Sydney, Australia (GGN Project) - RSHP
• UK Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre, London, UK – Adjaye Associates
• National Museum of African American History and Culture (GGN project) - Adjaye Associates
• Sydney Modern Project - Expansion of the Art Gallery of New South Wales (GGN project) – SANAA
• Osaka Park  (GGN project) – SANAA

Notable projects include: Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain, the Cultuurpark Westergasfabriek in Amsterdam, Seattle City Hall Plaza, the Robert and Arlene Kogod Courtyard at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and the landscape design for the National Museum of African American History and Culture, in Washington, DC. 

Kathryn’s current projects include; Site Tour Eiffel in Paris, a civic project in Senegal, Valencia Parque Central, Rhine Terrace at the Novartis Campus in Basel, Marina One in Singapore, and Taikoo Place in Hong Kong.

Lecture (Auckland) – Tuesday 27th February,  6 for 6.45 – 9.30pm. 

Fisher & Paykel Appliances Auditorium (F&PAA), Owen G. Glenn Building, University of Auckland   

"Cross Connections"

Landscape Architecture : Humanity + Art + Environment + EngineeringEnvironmental Art, Humanity: Environments, Land Art, Environmental planning

Kathryn will be giving a 60-minute illustrated lecture sharing insights into her practice and philosophies and projects including (but not limited to) Eiffel Tour Parc (Paris, France), Taikoo Place (Hong Kong) and National Botanic Garden of Wales (Wales, United Kingdom). 

Kathryn's talk will be followed by a Q&A. We will be recording Kathryn's lecture so you will be able to watch the livestream if yo can't make it in person.  Purchase a ticket to watch the livestream from this website. In person tickets will include one complimentary beverage token to be used before or after the lecture, a light supper after the lecture in the foyer, a cash bar open until 9.30pm and a wonderful opportunity to connect with friends and colleagues.

You can find ticket information here.

A discount code for NZILA members (proof of membership required at time of booking) provides a $10 discount off the GA ticket price of $85 making it $75 + booking fees.

Discount Code: KGLGDSAFF10

Ticket to the lecture includes a light supper afterwards and one complimentary beverage.

For the masterclasses reduced pricing for affiliated groups such as NZILA, NZIA, RML etc is available. No need for a discount code but proof of membership will be required when registering.