Landscape Fieldwork by Gareth Dorherty draws upon real-life examples of how practitioners can engage with sites using different methods to gain a greater understanding of the spaces. The book contains several chapters that provide an introduction and background to fieldwork, then summarise the author’s experiences undertaking fieldwork in different countries with varying cultures, and conclude with a framework for fieldwork.
Doherty also draws upon the writings of Corner, Halprin, Jellicoe, Jekyll, Olin, Olmsted, Whiston Spirn, and many other landscape architects and academics to provide insights into the need for immersive fieldwork and for truly experiencing spaces and the relationships between people and spaces. The author also explores how other disciplines (architects, ecologists, gardeners, historians, etc) undertake fieldwork and what is distinctive about landscape architecture fieldwork.
Doherty draws on his experiences as a landscape architect in Ireland, Bahrain, the Bahamas, Brazil, and other places to offer insights into how fieldwork can shape understanding of a space, city, and region, whilst also shaping your ideas about the possibilities. He also explores the materials (photography, sketches, notes) and methods (observation, traversing, conversations, language) and processes (singular, collective) for undertaking fieldwork and when to formalise notes and ideas.
The final chapter of Landscape Fieldwork provides a framework for fieldwork that includes four fundamentals (mix measures, immersion, contrast and imagine). Doherty concludes with a discussion of the importance of fieldwork, as the majority of the world doesn’t have a landscape architecture profession but does have landscape architecture practices.
Landscape Fieldwork provides insights into fieldwork practice through the author’s life experiences across different countries and thought-provoking discussions about the profession and the need to become more immersed in places to better understand their environments and cultures.
“Landscape fieldwork allows us to challenge the received norms, and the orthodoxy of our approaches from a disciplinary perspective.“
Landscape Fieldwork: How Engaging the World Can Change Design
Author: Gareth Dorherty
Publisher: University of Virginia Press
Publication: 2025
Language: English
Print length: 384 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0813952642
Book Review: Damian Holmes
Disclaimer: WLA received a print copy of the book for review purposes.