Japanese garden conference to feature renowned landscape architect Ron Herman


Cultural News, 2009 March Issue



 

The 25-acre estate of California software billionaire Lawrence Ellison at Portolla Valley, California, was designed by Ron Herman.

 

Ron Herman

 

    Renowned landscape architect, Ron Herman will give a public lecture

titled, In Search of an Unknown Aesthetic: Japanese Gardens in America on

Thursday, March 26 at 7:30 p.m. in Long Beach. The lecture will be the opening event of the International Conference on Japanese Garden Outside Japan.

 

    The presentation is an exciting opportunity for backyard gardeners and Japanese Garden enthusiasts. It will address Japanese Garden design strategies, water gardens with koi ponds and incorporating design elements that are relaxing and refreshing.

 

    Herman's talk will also make connections between Japanese Garden style,

contemporary California architecture, the Arts and Crafts movement and

Asian design for residential landscapes.

 

    Herman, a graduate of the University of California at Berkeley who studied under noted designers Garret Eckbo and Lawrence Halprin, has designed gardens for California software billionaire Lawrence Ellison, Joe Montana, Neil Young and other sports, entertainment and high-tech personalities.

 

   He has also completed public landscapes, such as the Oracle Corporation World Headquarters in Redwood City, California and the East Wing Garden at the National Gallery in Washington D.C.

 

   In Search of an Unknown Aesthetic: Japanese Gardens in America will be presented by Ron Herman on Thursday, March 26 at 7:30 p.m. at the Long Beach Hilton Hotel, 701 West Ocean Blvd., Long Beach, CA 90802.

Reservations are required. Tickets are $20 and include refreshments or $50

for the lecture and VIP reception with Ron Herman after the lecture. RSVP

by calling (562) 985.2169 or email jhiggins@csulb.edu. For information about the conference, visit  www.sculb.edu/~jgarden. 


Renowned landscape architect Ron Herman to speak about Unknown Aesthetic of Japanese gardens, March 26, 2009


Cultural News, 2009 February Issue


     Landscape architect Ron Herman, noted designer of many of North America’s largest and most intricate private gardens including the 25-acre Japanese-style village of California software billionaire Lawrence Ellison, is the featured speaker for the opening of the International Conference on Japanese Gardens Outside Japan, to be held from March 26-29 at California State University, Long Beach and Long Beach Hilton.

 

   In Search of an Unknown Aesthetic: Japanese Gardens in America will be presented by Ron Herman on Thursday, March 27 at 7:30 p.m. at Long Beach Hilton Hotel, 701 West Ocean Blvd., Long Beach, CA 90802. Tickets are $20 includes parking and refreshments; $50 for VIP reception with Ron Herman after his lecture; VIP reception fee includes $20 for his lecture.

 

     RSVP by March 20 by calling (562) 985-2169 or email jhiggins@csulb.edu. For information about the conference, visit www.csulb.edu/~jgarden.

 

     The son of a Southern California nurseryman, Herman is a graduate of the University of California at Berkeley where he studied under noted designers Garret Eckbo and Lawrence Halprin, founders of the philosophy of landscape design that came to be known as the California style.

 

    A lifelong study of Japanese design including graduate study at Kyoto University is credited by Herman as providing the foundation for his maturation as a designer. Employing the Japanese approach to design involves manipulating space and perspective to create a feeling of expansiveness.

 

    Herman believe that two qualities, sequence and spatiality, set his work apart from others creating large-scale landscapes. The garden unfolds as one moves through it. Through sequencing and layering, the landscape will appear to be larger than it actually is.

 

   Herman has authored numerous papers on Japanese garden design and co-authored A Guide to the Gardens of Kyoto, which is often noted as an authoritative text on Kyoto’s historic landscapes.

 

    In additions to the Ellison estate, Herman has worked on residential projects for Joe Montana, Neil Young and numerous other sports, entertainment and high-tech personalities. In the area of public landscapes, he completed the Oracle Corporation World Headquarters in Redwood City, California, and has recently designed the East Wing Garden at the National Gallery in Washington, D.C.