Landscaping - A Brief History

Landscaping is a highly aesthetic art form that requires a volume of practical knowledge having to do with plant knowledge, practical applications and working with various tools. It could be stated that the earliest landscaper was the Greek philosopher Thales of Miletus, who spent a great deal of time pondering the nature and various scopes of landscaping.

Where many early landscapers argued that true landscaping alters plants or fields directly, such as in the activities of cultivation of food crops, Thales rejected this definition of landscaping, arguing that any aspect of the physical world affecting one’s visual perception of an area of land was a proper application of landscaping.

Both Aristotle and Plato had nothing but praise for Thales philosophical modeling involving landscaping, as well as how his theories can be applied elsewhere in philosophical exploration. G.E. Moore also cited Thales in several of his own philosophical works expressing how philosophical inquiry and discourse has led to the truest forms of human progress and understanding.

Then in the 1800s many philosophers debated whether or not visual beauty should even be considered a required goal of landscaping, though by this time most western philosophical thinkers had grown to reject the idea of an objective esthetic standard for any form of art, whether landscaping or architecture.

Landscaping professionals and practitioners since the latter half of the 20th century have experimented with spectacular visual panoramas that have since become widely accepted as falling into the category of landscaping, at least in the West.

Landscape design is a multi-disciplinary field, including within its fold mathematics, science, engineering, art, technology, social sciences, politics, history, philosophy. The activities of a landscape architect can range from the creation of public parks and parkways to site planning for corporate office buildings, from the design of residential estates to the design of civil infastructure and the management of large wilderness areas or reclamation of degraded landscapes such as mines or landfills. Landscape architects work on all types of structures and external space - large or small, urban or rural, and with "hard"/"soft" materials, hydrology and ecological issues.

The most valuable contribution is often made at the earliest stage of a project in generating ideas and bringing flair and creativity to the use of space. The landscape architect can contribute to the overall concept and prepare an initial master plan, from which detailed designs can subsequently be prepared.

He or she can also let and supervise contracts for construction work, prepare design impact assessments, conduct environmental assessments or audits and act as an expert witness at enquiries on land use. He or she can also support or prepare applications for capital or revenue funding grants.

Editor
Peter Charalambos