Kathryn Gustafson

Kathryn Gustafson brings over 35 years of distinguished practice to her role as a founding partner of Gustafson Porter + Bowman. As an internationally-acclaimed landscape architect, Kathryn is renowned for bringing a unique ability to define a project’s vision and creating distinctive sculptural landscapes which engage at a fundamental human level.
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Kathryn’s work at Gustafson Porter + Bowman includes the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain, Old Market Square in Nottingham, the Cultuurpark Westergasfabriek in Amsterdam and Site Tour Eiffel in Paris among others.
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Prior to establishing Gustafson Porter + Bowman, Kathryn worked in France from 1980 until 1997, 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, a medallist of the French Academy of Architecture and a Chartered Member of the Landscape Institute. 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, the 8th Obayashi Prize, Japan in 2014 and the 2019 Geoffrey Jellicoe Award. In 2021, she was elected as a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Landscape Design should be about creating spaces that are unique to place, client and the people that will use the space. They should tell a story, surprise and invite discovery. Landscape Architecture needs to be viewed as a hybrid of:Art, Humanity, Environment, Engineering

Creating biodiversity requires commitment to long-term maintenance and management of a space. We are in a fascinating and frustrating era: the warming of the climate is creating dire impacts. We need to become part of the ways and means to help create beautiful well designed public spaces with evolutive solutions that address climate change.This requires a progressive attitude and collaborations with clients, the design team and the public, including dialogues about the future and how design can respond and evolve over time.