Halprin landscapes, downtown LA

I admire the work of late landscape architect Larry Halprin. In his work, he carefully considered landscape ecology and processes, especially the flow of water, as well as considering individual people's experience of places, including movement and choreography of space (his wife was Anna Halprin, regarded as a trailblazer in contemporary dance). He also developed innovative community participation processes to create dialogue about public space; one such process took place in Charlottesville, Virginia, when the Halprin firm was working on what is now the Downtown Mall.

Most of Halprin's best known work is in the Northwest, but I was excited to hear that he has some projects in LA as well. One is the Maguire Gardens at the Central Public Library downtown, one of my favorite spots of the past few weeks. What is most striking to me about the garden is the range of places to sit: you can sit on a bench in the shade, or on a low wall listening to the rush of the fountain, or in the sun along the terraced axis, watching people come and go. With these choices, it seems that each person finds his or her own comfortable spot to be, within the bustling diversity of downtown.






The other Halprin landscape is the Bunker Hill Steps, which are similarly influenced by Italian design. Surrounded by strong vertical architecture, the steps are a bold, horizontal, landscape gesture. The central fountain was off when I visited, and the rocks looked strangely Disney-esque. From the top of the steps, one can look over the library's roof and sun mosaic.