Spectrum Hawaii; 302; Design With Nature-The Landscaper's Art

The following program is a production of key HEG in Honolulu Hawaii Public Television. The following program has been funded in part by grants from the Hawaii State foundation on culture and the arts. The people of Chevron in Hawaii and the Hawaii Committee for the Humanities a public program of the National Endowment for the Humanities A. Oh.

Earth air water and fire above us all readily available for others. No no no.

No no. The landscape has been a perennial source of inspiration for artists rich diverse stimulating tranquil and healing the landscape architect refers to nature directly and perpetually in his attempt to shape men's environment. Water soil. Plants and rock. Serve him as a material for his art with a training that reaches into both science and art. The landscape architect designs with nature. Yes. Long ago the early

Hawaiians divided their land into wedge shaped districts or extending from the forested mountains to the coastal plains. Today what we know is Manoa Valley was once carefully organized into fish ponds and paddy fields well irrigated by flowing canals. It's. A European botanist on the Vancouver expedition of 1793 looked up from his arrival at Waikiki and marveled at the little fields planted with Taro yams and sweet potatoes. Each watered in a most ingenious manner by dividing the general stream into little aqueducts. The soil seemed to repay the labor of the people with luxury and Productions. The area envied for its abundance was the goal of King Kamehameha his final offensive in his conquest of the Hawaiian islands in 1795 when eight miles of Waikiki shoreline was covered by over a thousand of his

canoes. Owned by the University of Hawaii this kind of cultural garden is an authentic recreation of an ancient irrigation complex. Here students may learn to cultivate native plants early planting methods and the traditional Hawaiian sensitivity to land. Caring for the land and love for the land are not easily dismissed. Here is artist Wayne Preble most of the destructive things that have been happening in the environment. Have been happening because of human decisions as human beings we do have the responsibility for our choices. In terms of environmental design choices. I think the land is alive in ways that we are just beginning to really consciously understand. As as an artist. I mean I've been trained to be aware of what's in front of my eyes and what I what pleases me

or what intrigues me or what's what whatever seems to be significant. The sounds as well as what we see here are very very restful. I mean that's why people love to go to parks. If you let me park is the largest urban park in Honolulu. Once the scene of horseracing and polo playing today its versatility allows for many games to be played. You mean when King spoke at the dedication of this park in 1877 he said certainly no better use can be made of some portion of our new prosperity than in creating on this breezy plane a resort and place of innocent refreshment for all who wish to leave the dust of the town's streets. Copywriting park as is perhaps our most significant park in the state one of the park's planner Steve solace recognizes the value of City Park. For example in Honolulu we expect 200000 more people residents that is over the next 20 years that means communities as large

as Kyla and co. only combined will be living on this island. The planted landscape holds the soil modifies the climate and provides a windbreak. The banging of a corporation is a unique. Example of landscape architecture in Honolulu The Banyan court McCoy pavilion was completed in 1937. It was designed with the theme of India in mind. Most designers and people were acquainted and created in the planning urban design fields. Don't have a great deal of regard for Honolulu and often come to Hawaii for rest and recreation and usually on the outer islands. When they do venture to Honolulu they have one look at Waikiki but and scream that horror and go to the airport but some of them.

Explore the city and find small gems like. I don't want to park the bank in CT. Mother wanted park and number of parks like Motherwell train which were an example of good design good planning. Interesting construction there fine as well as functional. But one definition. Intelligence is the ability to respond adaptively to the environment unlike other animals that know only want or fear. Man with his thought and speech. Very cool. What is absent. Who remembers what is out of sight. Choices come to mind and a plan. Landscape architects essentially try to humanize spaces with a green plant material and they're there for. They're creating

places that are pleasant to be and to move through. To look at. Does it offer order and convenience is it a delight to the senses. These are common measures for a successful garden. The Kukui Plaza and downtown Honolulu is distinguished by its rooftop garden. By offering a planned landscape in an area where high land values have put a premium on open space. This private rooftop garden gives its residents ample recreational amenities. It was designed by landscape architect Donald will bring. This. Cost. About one million dollars and taking into account the construction cost of the additional structural requirements to support it. That means that we have provided a completely developed park in the center of the city for $10 a square foot. Now where could you go to get to buy the

land and develop back in a central urban area or. When you can even approach it for. 10 or 20 or 30 times. Mr Will Brink's work extends from the Bahamas to Pakistan Okinawa Micronesia and Australia the open space concept the god concept. Is vital in any urban area. Most anything can be done if the community really wants it and we have here in Hawaii. As I recall in the setbacks I didn't get a text chapter I think 66 members and the very fact that there are that many landscape architects in Honolulu who are working in good measure of the impact that landscape architecture is having in Hawaii. A very distinguished leader is Richard Tong. He was born the same year the American Society of antibiotics was founded 1899. And Richard we urge him to stick around so he will have lived in three centuries a dozen never had to try to go it in 1990

21. One of the first sights to greet a new visitor to Honolulu by the airport gardens of Richard John. Purposely designed the Japanese the Chinese and the whole AM garden with a traveller in mind. And the one of the things that I don't want it is the yarn here was something that will cause a rooster to. Want to go beyond hunger look. If you saw a good garden and became interested in you who might be interested to go back to China and Japan.

Richard Tong is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in Hawaii. Plant is always beautiful to me and I really wanted to compose and so that I become a part of a of a picture a living picture you know originated Chinese were the first ones to get planned with the military and you of course there are a few that your answer is about man. A hundred. Eco. When he began work on his gardens at the airport the airport architect wasn't sure what Mr Tong was about to do. I asked him I said Would you mind giving me a chance to express myself. That I would do it wrong. Then you just throw it away or. You lose your

mirror break and who didn't and that's the result of this. But when they're when the thing was finished I hear they're proud of it too. I'm delighted. I was delighted to walk in the gardens of the gardens. This is a very extremely important element in human existence. People without them. I think are in a very sad state of affairs. As a practicing landscape architect for 24 years author and publisher John Dominic sold because the first stirrings of interest in plant life. I came back from New York and discovered you know the. Plots in Hawaii and I was simply overwhelmed by the beauty of the I worked in our garden my mother with my mother and she knew a lot about that she grew up in my local in a big garden. And. She was wonderful to to work with because she knew so much about plants and

I suppose it was infectious her enthusiasm as it may have rubbed off on me and I was hooked after that sub I could never go back to anthropology and slaving away with both Benedict and Margaret Mead and various other types of at Columbia University. And suddenly I was just. My whole life changed I was going to spend the rest of my life being close to plants and working with them. Things that grow in the tropics love to grow in a way particularly. Yet Mr. Holt is alert to the contrast that is revealed by the plants imported into Hawaii. There are different for more. Plants and then the smells and the flowers and the striatum leaves they look like snakes. And lizards like RIP to you. And there's nothing of that kind in. The native flora away. It's all very benign like everything else here benign to the point of being you know imminently extinct.

I mean they have no ability to resist competition. And like the Hawaiians I mean this the soft sweet smelling plants of Hawaii can't compete with the heavy odorous try 8 had strong cannibalistic plants that come from other places. But. In my opinion they're very handsome additions to a tropical garden and very beautiful. One of the big problems that we have in a clavicle area like Hawaii is that the plants have never had it so good. You know you can bring a plant in from somewhere in the world like Africa where you know all the conditions and not raining prying that you bring it into a lie and you read in the book that the plant is supposed to be only about 10 or 12 feet high. Well you planted in Hawaii and it shoots you know and becomes about you know 40 50 feet in

height. Dr. Hugh is the director of the Lyon Arboretum in Meadow a valley located in the distant origins of Manoa Valley against the range. The Lyon Arboretum is a botanical garden with a climate similar to the rain forests of Borneo and Southeast Asia. Administered by the University of Lyon Arboretum is gifted with deep well drained soil and extensive rainfall. Well I think that it's a natural greenhouse line arboretum because we are in a tropical area has been called upon by the National Institutes of Health. National Cancer Center to provide samples of tropical plants for natural products which would come that leukemia. You can never tell where the new natural product might come from. Of course I would suspect that once they have been able to completely identify the compound it might be made synthetically. But you have to depend on

nature to produce a unique compound. Probably these plants have secrets. Which we at the present time have never been able to uncover. With easy grace and idyllic Serenity one realizes with exhilarating impact the shape of a garden has evoked a response in us. We've entered into an experience. This response cannot always be planned but the landscape architect is tireless in his attempt to do so. I left a year from the time that made the first telephone call came and opening day tamarin park was designed by landscape architect James Herbert. It was being used as the building would be painted and Creek Amy and fully grown and no one gave me and I had it very quickly and that

it was almost immediately and I enjoyed it I didn't have to wait a week for about six months to pass before something would be new. The park is placed at a historic corner named in honor of Charles Reed Bishop has been the prince's Bahrainis the last of the committee mess. The bishops Square development contains more than 80000 square feet of travertine marble imported from the quarries the musette the ruffle in Verona Italy. People tell me that one of my body that is designed by United to be out there is a lot of architecture and the sculpture by Englishman Henry Moore is titled. Upright motives. Landscape Architecture is not just plant life. It's also in the planning of

land elevations in terms of land contours if that needs to be changed or modified in any way. Hopefully it's done with sensitivity to the contours of the of the land that are there to begin with the natural contours of the metal on the golf course has won awards for its sculptural treatment of lava landforms and water placing it at the level of landscape gardening. Well we basically approach the design of a golf course as one might approach the design of a very large park. I found it an opportunity I think to express landforms on a very large scale which is something I've always been interested in. A leader in the field of resort planning Ray Kane is noted for his sensitive treatment of planting design. He's also an acknowledged authority on landscaping with love as evidenced by his work at the mana Lani hotel and golf course on the big island. From the very beginning we knew we were going to have to do something special at modeline because we were going up against some pretty heavy duty developments around

us that had some you know very interesting places like Mike Waikoloa and some of the surrounding areas. We knew we had to do something special and so I think one of the things that we tried to capitalize on was the vastness of the site and to to allow again the lava to be the predominant theme and to work with this juxtaposition of the solid black and the green lawn and the blue sky as well as the blue oceans so accented by these little white spots of the sand trap so we were looking at the total thing is sort of a color a composition of form and texture and and land mounding. It's a very expensive golf course it's the most expensive one I can think of but certainly the physical conditions upon which the golf course was were constructed is probably as difficult as anything I've ever seen. Most It was quite mind boggling to go out there and look at just these miles and miles of just barren rock and just to walk around on the site was

a major effort. I mean you could ruin your shoes just within 10 feet and you had your shoes could be just cut to ribbons by the sharp lava so it was probably one of the most difficult jobs we've ever had. The biggest problem that you have in working in the lava is that it's so easily destroyed. So there's so many examples of where you've got to find what you want and how to display it and then try not to destroy it in the process of utilizing it as a as a landform. If there's a particularly unique lava formation we might actually lift it up and store it somewhere and bring it back later on or or take certain chunks of lava that have a natural character to them and to put them somewhere and then bring them back later on. The primary theme of this island is the lava and people find it interesting so we should try and retain it. The surprise to me is how well everything grows in this lava. I find it really almost frightening when you see some of these trees growing out of just what appears to be a solid mass of rock and

it's been one of the joys for me working with Mother Nature is there's always a surprise because you never quite sure what you're going to end up with. When the world is a very beautiful place and even even in the middle of an arid desert there's there's there's great beauty in nature. The residential garden is here exemplified by Marion Mapes memorial garden at Lyon arboretum. It was designed by landscape architect Steven house seen here conferring with artist Wayne Preble the garden is a steady and harmonious relationships where beauty and usefulness of the end result of all design. Mr. House's design for the garden

was influenced by Japanese traditions Japanese written characterful whole T.N. combines the words for house and garden to the Japanese. The House does not become a home until it includes a garden. Traditional Japanese custom relies on a fence to separate the garden sanctuary from the outside world. Stepping Stones evoke a passage often with a hint of mystery textural variety is enhanced by the studied placement of steps rock and bridge the formality of the hexagonal paving pattern gently used to a more natural arrangement of stones.

The maid's garden links together the symbol of water from the fogs to the basin and along a rock bed that flows with water during a minnow rain. You know why in the world why refers to any liquid other than the ocean and that includes fresh water and human blood. It also is a word that means wealth in Hawaiian. Chi is is the sea ocean water. Kai. Of course is fresh water. I think that the meanings of his word and its metaphorical extensions is what tells us that they have a hell of a lot of respect for water. Why all the water of life. See and it was every look every valley it seems has its why although it's a place where where water is sanctified almost sanctified where where a little pool of water are fresh out of water

has has a very basic kind of importance to that area. And with that name the naming of a place of my own. Is then further extending the idea of venerating water respect to get. Respect. The land for what it is. And what the future generations will need. And that is landscape architecture. When we're talking about the landscape architect we're really talking about the art form that is working most closely with nature and working with plants as they grow in their natural way. The landscape architect is part farmer part scientist part architect part artist really the landscape architect is a painter working with plant material rather than paint. The Bel Air.

The. The. Spangler identifies the landscape as the base for the culture he writes that man is so held to it by Myriad fibers that without it life so than thought are inconceivable the the. The in. The in the. With.

The OR. With. With. A wheat. With. The N. With. Spectrum has been funded in part by grants from the Hawaii Committee for the Humanities all public program of the National Endowment for the Humanities. The people of Chevron in Hawaii and the Hawaii State foundation on culture and the arts.