Landscape Design Coordinator Earns Prestigious Honor

Posted in Learning Experiences, People on September 28 2010, by Plant Talk

Susan Cohen, Portfolio Series Founder, Named to ASLA Council of Fellows

Jeff Downing is Vice President for Education.

Often, landscape design is most successful when it is least apparent. Perhaps because landscapes serve partly as transitions from the natural to the built world, many great landscape projects are noteworthy for being so harmonious with their surrounding environments that they seem timeless, as though they were always there.

The same could be said for the Landscape Design Portfolio Lecture Series. The Portfolio Series, which features renowned landscape architects from around the world discussing their most important projects, is presented each year in midtown Manhattan on Monday evenings in October and November. Over the years, the series has become so ingrained in the Garden’s fall calendar as a must-see event that it is easy to believe it has always existed. But it did not.

The Portfolio Series is the brainchild of Susan Cohen, Registered Landscape Architect and Coordinator of the Garden’s Landscape Design Certificate Program. From its inception in 1998, Susan envisioned the series as a platform to showcase world-renowned landscape architects, and a logical extension of the Garden’s popular landscape design program. In the 12 years since, the portfolio series has featured 50 influential designers of outdoor spaces large and small, public and private.

At the same time, the series has helped increase visibility for and discussion of the importance of landscape architecture in our everyday lives, and has provided sneak previews of noteworthy New York City projects. In 2004 Peter Walker presented his design for the World Trade Center Memorial. In 2008 James Corner gave a preview of the High Line several months before it opened to rave reviews and public acclaim.

On September 12 of this year Susan Cohen was named to the Council of Fellows of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA). This distinction is a prestigious honor given to landscape architects for exceptional accomplishments over a sustained period of time. In presenting Susan with the award, ASLA representatives made special mention of the Portfolio Lecture Series and its special contribution to the field of landscape architecture.

The New York Botanical Garden enthusiastically congratulates Susan Cohen for her designation to the ASLA Council of Fellows, and for her dedication and continuing contributions to the Garden’s landscape design program. Susan’s career in landscape design began when she enrolled in the Garden’s certificate program. As her career and reputation grew she remained connected to the Garden as an instructor and later as Program Coordinator and as a member of the Garden’s Board of Advisors.

Susan continues to personally curate and host the Portfolio Series every year, and has another fabulous slate of international landscape architects scheduled for this fall. This year, we are very pleased to offer the Portfolio Series at 20 West 44th Street in Manhattan, which is home to the Garden’s new Midtown Education Center. Don’t miss out. Seating is limited so register early. And when you come, please take a moment to congratulate Susan on her prestigious and well-earned award.

Generous support for the Landscape Design Portfolio Lecture Series is provided by the Arthur Ross Foundation.

See the schedule and register for this year’s Landscape Design Portfolio Lecture Series.