Landscape Blog - July 2022

Our new profile pic for July was from BA (Hons) Art and the Environment student Claire Jebbitt, which coincided with World Nature Conservation Day on 28th July. 

One of the key things you can do to help increase biodiversity is to fill your garden with a range of flowering plants. Not only will your garden look wonderful, but you'll also be providing vital nectar and pollen for essential pollinators.

Here's some useful info from the RHS:

https://www.rhs.org.uk/science/pdf/conservation-and-biodiversity/wildlife/plants-for-pollinators-garden-plants.pdf

#Biodiversity #ClimateChange #Nature #Conservation #Art #Environment #LandscapeArchitecture #GardenDesign #Gardens #Plants #Flowers

 

Thameside Nature Discovery Park

Congratulations to former Writtle students, Alex Pettitt and Sharon Chilvers! They'll be creating a picnic area and ecology-focused gardens for Essex Wildlife Trust Thameside Nature Discovery Park. Find out more here:

https://writtle.ac.uk/pge_PressRelease.cfm?ID=21918 

#WUCGradSuccess

 

Top Teaching

BREAKING NEWS! Writtle University College is the top university provider in the East of England for student satisfaction with teaching.

We're also in the top 12 of all providers in England for overall student satisfaction based on National Student Survey taught data.

https://writtle.ac.uk/pge_PressRelease.cfm?ID=21922

 

Sam Moore wins RHS Hampton Court Silver Medal

Well done to our former student Sam Moore! His Suns Lifestyle Outdoor Living Garden won a silver medal at #RHSHamptonCourt. Sam (bottom-right) studied BSc (Hons) Landscape and Garden Design at Writtle and graduated in 2018.

https://writtle.ac.uk/pge_PressRelease.cfm?ID=21920

 

Tower of London Super Bloom

Course Manager Saruhan Mosler visit the #TowerOfLondon to check out the moat covered with wild flower meadows. London #SuperBloom looked fantastic in glorious sunshine.

#LandscapeArchitecture #GardenDesign #Gartengestaltung #CityGreen #Wildflowers #Meadow #UrbanMeadow #BeesAndButterflies #WrittleLandscapeArchitecture #UrbanGarden #HistoricLandscape #WorldHeritage

 

Exploring the landscapes of Croatia

Laura Cohen, who recently completed our BSc (Hons) Landscape and Garden Design, was able to increase her subject knowledge even on a well-deserved holiday...

'Fažana, Croatia - This coastline is famous for its well-maintained pebbled beaches and traditional Istrian hospitality.

The fisherman's village plaza uses implied lines surrounding the parish church. Reused concrete pipes used as planters sit parallel to the coastal 'entertainment' walk and cycle path.

Here, various abstract benches dot the journey, one of which is installed with a seat sensor that plays music or sounds of the ocean when used. The pebbled beach merges into the grassy landscape inland where olive groves can be found with the smell of sweet meadow.'

#OutAndAbout #Croatia #Sunset #Landscape #Trip #LandscapeArchitecture #GardenDesign

Practical and beautiful campus

As well as being very pretty, and full of life and vital pollinators, the Writtle University College campus is an important practical resource for the students to use.

There are many working plots and glasshouses for a variety of purposes, including this glasshouse just a stone's throw from the Design Centre (but we wouldn't recommend throwing any stones of course😄).

#Writtle #Design #Art #Science #Landscape #Environment #GardenDesign #Plants #Flowers #Nature #Gardens #Biodiversity

Landscape Blog - June 2022

We started June with a new profile pic from BA (Hons) #Art and the #Environment student Claire Jebbitt, as part of #GardenWildlifeWeek. 

Our gardens are very important for supporting #nature. What #plants are you going to add to your #garden to increase #biodiversity and support these important #ecosystems?

 

Mac & Me

Just a short walk from our vibrant campus, through the beautiful Essex countryside, is a lovely coffee shop called Mac & Me. They roast they’re own coffee beans and you can enjoy their coffee in their stylish coffee shop or take the ground beans away with you.

It was a great place to get together to make plans for the coming year. No doubt we'll be back there again soon. 😄

www.macandmeroasting.co.uk/

#PlanningAhead #LandscapeArchitecture #GardenDesign #OutAndAbout #ExploreChelmsford #ExploreEssex

 

Summer Solstice

June also saw the summer solstice, the start of astronomical summer in the northern hemisphere, and it was a #beautiful day on campus.

#Solstice #SummerSolstice #Summer #Love #Nature #Sun

 

Lake District

With the students finishing in May it gave the staff a little time for some R&R, and our #Design technician Steve Jeyes went #OutAndAbout in the #LakeDistrict to #explore the amazing landscapes, including climbing to the top of Loughrigg Fell.

#Nature is great for rejuvenating, and it's hard to find a more #beautiful place in #England (but there's plenty of #amazing places so it's worth a try 😄).

Landscape Blog - May 2022

May was a very busy month, so there's lots to cover in this month's Landscape Blog, starting with the new exhibition profile pic, featuring the competition winning image by BA (Hons) Art and the Environment student Claire Jebbitt.

Building the WUC Design Degree Show

Every year the students build their exhibition with the help of Writtle Design technician Steve Jeyes. The studio is converted into an exhibition space just a few days before the Private View. 

Here you can see the hard-working LAGD students (and Steve) taking a short rest for a photo op, with the final stages of the exhibition build well underway.

#Writtle #Design #DegreeShow #Exhibition #ManyHandsMakeLightWork #WUCshow2022

 

WUC Design Degree Show Launches!

The Writtle University College Design Degree Show 2022 opened at 5pm on Wednesday 11th May.

The exhibition featured 2nd and 3rd year undergraduate Art and the Environment students, and both undergraduate and postgraduate students of Landscape Architecture & Garden Design, and it highlighted the breadth of skill and creativity from our amazing students.

Private View: Wednesday 11th May, 17:00-21:00
Public Opening: Thursday 12th – Sunday 15th May, 11:00-17:00

Virtual Exhibition Launch: Wednesday 25th May, from 12:00 (BST/UTC+1)
Virtual Exhibition website: http://www.wuc-designshow.co.uk

#WUCshow2022 #Writtle #DegreeShow #Art #Design #Environment #LandscapeArchitecture #GardenDesign #Degree #Masters #Exhibition

 

Essex Gardens Trust People's Choice Award 2022

The Essex Gardens Trust People's Choice Award returned for 2022, and 300 votes were cast by the public during the Design Degree Show. Two awards were up for grabs, one for undergraduate and one for postgraduate.

The winner of the postgraduate award was... Meg Cowell (MA Landscape Architecture), with her project entitled 'Rural Connections - Reidentifying Bradwell Power Station on a Recreational Coastline'. Commendations went to Lissy Moriarty (MA Landscape Architecture - conversion year) with her project 'Heal - Health, Environment and Agriculture Lab'.

The winner of the undergraduate award was... Jack Wakefield (BSc Landscape Architecture) with his project entitled 'Healing Waters - Enhancing Ecological and Human Systems on The River Stort'. Commendations went to Laura Cohen (BSc Landscape and Garden Design) with her project 'Gweledigaeth Twnel - Tunnel Vision'.

Congratulations to the winners and runners up.

#EssexGardensTrust #PeoplesChoiceAward #LandscapeArchitecture #GardenDesign #DesignStudio #LandscapeDesign

 

Gillespies Award - Best Exhibition Piece

The  #LAGDaward from Gillespies for the Best Exhibition Piece went to... Meg Cowell.

Armel Mourgue said 'It is a powerful exhibition piece, bold in colour and graphics with so much information. The more you zoom in, the more you read, the more you see the thoughts and work that has gone into this project.'

#Congratulations again Meg, on your 2nd award win!

Armel also said that 'the following submissions also stood out and should be congratulated for such beautiful work':

Jiyeon Park (BSc (Hons) Landscape Architecture)

Laura Cohen (BSc (Hons) Landscape and Garden Design)

Martin Smith (MA Landscape Architecture)

and Sarah Freeman (MA Landscape Architecture)

Well done all!

#Writtle #Exhibition #DegreeShow #LandscapeArchitecture #GardenDesign #DesignStudio  #LandscapeDesign

 

CED Stone Award - Best Use of Hard Landscaping Materials

Our next #LAGDaward came from CED Stone, for Best Use of Hard Landscaping Materials.

Giles Heap said 'As usual, a very high standard all around.  I can see the students' level of detail and understanding of "space/place" and how we as humans interact with the built environment growing every year.  The thoughts, considerations and ideas that your students are putting together yet again, gives me hope for the future not just of our industry, but of our environment.  Again, huge kudos to the faculty.'

Winner of the postgraduate award was... Clare Birkbeck, with her project 'Salutogenic Connections - Increasing community cohesion in Thaxted'.

'This simple, yet thoughtful design has completely captured the essence of one of Essex', indeed the entire East of England's, oldest towns. Thaxted has such a rich history, both in terms of trade and local tradition, but also the architecture, which gives it such a sense of place, it is unmistakable. 

Claire's understanding of the issues (resistors) that the town suffers from is, in my opinion, spot on. Her choice of warm, traditional materials, sometimes used with a twist, suit the town better than almost anything else she could have chosen.'

Winner of the undergraduate award was... Jiyeon Park, with her project 'Taming the Untamed'.

'Jiyeon has shown a deep understanding of the industrial history of Swanscombe and managed to choose a pallet of materials and design that embodies not just the past, but the present and, hopefully the future.

Solid and bold design features and material choice give context, yet allow the site to be enjoyed as a wonderful space.  Encouraging the wilding of the area can only be a benefit to all, and the soft contours of the paths and planting are balanced beautifully by the hard, industrial, black granite features.'

Congratulations both!

#LandscapeArchitecture #GardenDesign #DesignStudio #LandscapeDesign

 

BricsCAD Award - Most Innovative Digital Rendering

Our final #LAGDaward was for Most Innovative Digital Rendering from BricsCAD by Hexagon.

Winner of the undergraduate award was Laura Cohen (BSc (Hons) Landscape and Garden Design) with her project 'Gweledigaeth Twnel (Tunnel Vision)'.

Winner of the postgraduate award was Sam Laws (MA Landscape Architecture) with her project 'Liminal Landscapes - An Informal Armatures Approach to Displacement Management at Calais'.

'In both their renderings, their choice of colours and lineweights in their individual renderings beautifully articulated their design concepts whilst maintaining a sleek overall graphical look to their storyboards.'

Congratulations to both of you!

#LandscapeArchitecture #GardenDesign #DesignStudio #WUCshow2022 #LandscapeDesign

 

WUC Design Degree Show Website Launches!

The Writtle University College Design Degree Show exhibition website launched on 25th May.

The exhibition features all of the artwork from our Art and the Environment students, and all of the design projects of our undergraduate and postgraduate students of Landscape Architecture and Garden Design.

You also find the students' Cross Disciplinary Projects and a few extras too, along with an archive of the last two Design Degree Shows.

https://www.wuc-designshow.co.uk/

#WUCshow2022